Government Extends Social Distancing for 2 Weeks... Prime Minister Kim: "Advance Payment of 5 Million Won for Loss Compensation" (Update)

COVID-19 Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters Meeting

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum is speaking while presiding over the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meeting for COVID-19 response held at the Government Seoul Office on the 31st.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Son Seon-hee] The government has decided to extend the current social distancing measures, which limit private gatherings to four people or fewer and restrict operating hours of restaurants and cafes to 9 p.m., for two more weeks.

In response to the prolonged strengthened quarantine measures, the government plans to prioritize providing a loss compensation of 5 million won to self-employed individuals and small business owners who are expected to suffer significant damage immediately.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum chaired the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters meeting on the 31st at the Government Seoul Office and announced, "Time is needed to proactively prepare before the highly transmissible Omicron variant spreads widely in the country."

He added, "We will strengthen quarantine management by mandating the quarantine pass for crowded places such as department stores and large marts," and said, "The controversial youth quarantine pass will be applied from March 1 (next year), when the new school term begins, with a one-month grace period."

Prime Minister Kim said, "The greatest concern when deciding to extend the strengthened quarantine measures was the continued suffering of small business owners and the self-employed," and explained, "Self-employed individuals, who have given up the year-end peak season and must bear labor and rent costs fully, most requested 'immediate financial support,' and the opinions raised at the Daily Recovery Support Committee were no different."

He continued, "The government has decided to support loss compensation through a 'pre-payment, post-settlement' method," stating, "Applications will be accepted from about 550,000 people, and 5 million won will be paid first; the amount will be settled later once the compensation amount is finalized." He added, "We will also promptly disburse the 1 million won quarantine support fund to the remaining eligible individuals, following the 650,000 people who have already received it."

With this extension of social distancing measures until January next year, loss compensation for the first quarter is inevitable. This means the government will first pay 5 million won immediately and later settle by deducting the pre-paid amount from the actual loss compensation based on the extent of damage.

Prime Minister Kim said, "With this extension of social distancing measures, our community will need to focus on quarantine by sacrificing daily life and livelihoods a little more for two weeks," and added, "If citizens demonstrate a little more awareness over the next two weeks and the quarantine situation stabilizes, we will actively consider easing the quarantine measures."

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