COVID-19 Severe Cases Back to Over 1,000 in One Day... 5,202 New Confirmed Cases

At the COVID-19 screening clinic set up at Seodaemun-gu Public Health Center in Seoul, citizens are taking a number to get tested on the 20th. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The number of critically ill COVID-19 patients increased to the 1,000 range in just one day.

On the 21st, the Central Disease Control Headquarters announced that as of midnight, the number of critically ill patients was 1,022, the second highest ever recorded. The number of critically ill patients first exceeded 1,000 on the 18th with 1,016 patients, and reached a peak of 1,025 on the 19th.

Among the critically ill patients, 872 (85.3%) are elderly aged 60 and above. This was followed by 75 patients (7.34%) in their 50s, 41 patients (4.01%) in their 40s, and 26 patients (2.54%) in their 30s. There were also 6 patients (0.59%) in their 20s and 2 patients (0.20%) in their teens.

The utilization rate of COVID-19 severe care beds as of 5 p.m. the previous day nationwide was 80.7% (1,079 out of 1,337 beds in use). In the metropolitan area (Seoul, Gyeonggi, Incheon), the rate was 87.7% (734 out of 837 beds in use), still close to 90%. As of midnight, 420 patients in the metropolitan area were waiting for bed allocation for hospitalization, and 171 patients were waiting to be admitted to residential treatment centers.

The number of new confirmed cases as of midnight was 5,202. Following 5,318 cases the previous day, the number remained in the 5,000 range for two consecutive days. The total cumulative confirmed cases in the country reached 575,615.

The number of deaths due to COVID-19 the previous day was 52. The cumulative death toll stands at 4,828, with the domestic cumulative fatality rate remaining at 0.84%. Among the deceased, 51 were elderly aged 60 and above, and one was in their 50s.

The number of Omicron variant COVID-19 infections increased by 49, bringing the total to 227.

Regarding the infection routes of the new confirmed cases on this day, 5,144 were locally transmitted and 58 were imported cases. The daily new confirmed cases over the past week (December 15?21) were 7,850 → 7,621 → 7,434 → 7,312 → 6,235 (corrected from 6,236) → 5,318 → 5,202, averaging 6,710 cases per day.

Among the new locally transmitted cases on this day, 1,979 were in Seoul, 1,299 in Gyeonggi, and 381 in Incheon, totaling 3,659 cases (71.1%) in the metropolitan area alone. Non-metropolitan new cases included 233 in Busan, 184 in Gyeongnam, 163 in Chungnam, 144 in Jeonbuk, 136 in Daegu, 125 in Daejeon, 116 in Gangwon, 101 in Gyeongbuk, 87 in Chungbuk, 75 in Gwangju, 40 in Jeonnam, 35 in Ulsan, 25 in Jeju, and 21 in Sejong, totaling 1,485 cases (28.9%).

The number of imported confirmed cases was 58, two fewer than the previous day (60). Combining local and imported cases (excluding quarantine), the metropolitan area accounted for 3,691 new cases: Seoul 1,994, Gyeonggi 1,313, and Incheon 384. Confirmed cases were reported in all 17 cities and provinces nationwide.

The number of suspected cases tested at screening clinics the previous day was 72,946, and the number of tests conducted at temporary screening centers was 194,336, totaling 267,282 tests.

The domestic COVID-19 vaccination completion rate as of midnight was 82.0%, with a cumulative total of 42,131,332 people vaccinated. The booster vaccination rate was 24.1% of the total population (cumulative 12,377,850 people).

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