Temporary Screening Stations Increased by 34 Locations... Operating Hours Extended

On the 20th, as the spread of COVID-19 continues, citizens are taking numbered tickets to get tested at the COVID-19 screening clinic set up at Seodaemun-gu Public Health Center in Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] The government has decided to secure an additional 34 temporary screening clinics.

The Central Disease Control Headquarters (CDCH) stated at a regular briefing on the 20th, "To expand testing capacity, we plan to install 34 more temporary screening clinics and will also supplement more equipment and personnel in diagnostic laboratories."

The additional locations include 6 sites in Incheon, 5 in Seoul, and 4 in Gyeonggi Province, totaling 15 sites in the metropolitan area. Outside the metropolitan area, 19 new clinics will be established: 5 in Gyeongbuk, 4 in Gangwon, 3 in Gyeongnam, 2 each in Busan and Jeonnam, and 1 each in Gwangju, Chungbuk, and Chungnam.

Operating hours of the clinics will also be extended. Previously, they operated from 9 a.m. to 5-6 p.m. on weekdays, but considering workers who need to get tested after work hours, operations will be extended until 9 p.m. Temporary screening clinics that operated from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on weekends will now be available until 6 p.m.

In addition to expanding clinics, the government is reviewing plans to deploy automated equipment on-site. Park Young-jun, head of the epidemiological investigation team at CDCH, explained, "We are also considering the use of automated equipment, and some devices approved by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety will be used in large volumes."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.