Lee Jaegab's Straight Talk "Yoon, Is the Quarantine Pass Unscientific? ... Will You Not Implement the Quarantine Pass If You Take Power?"

"Quarantine Pass, Social Distancing, and Vaccination Are Difficult to Separate... They Work Synergistically"
Yoon on 'Facility-specific Ventilation Grading System': "I Agree, It's a Very Important Area"

Professor Lee Jae-gap of the Department of Infectious Diseases at Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital criticized Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] Professor Lee Jae-gap of the Department of Infectious Diseases at Hallym University Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital refuted the remarks made by Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, who criticized the government's quarantine measures as unscientific, stating that he "cannot agree" with them.

Earlier on the 11th, Candidate Yoon posted on his Facebook, stating, "Withdraw the unscientific quarantine pass, withdraw the 9 PM business restriction, oppose mandatory vaccination for children and adolescents." On the same day, at a forum held at the National Assembly, he argued regarding COVID-19 quarantine measures, "Measures that restrict fundamental rights must have valid grounds, but the current government's quarantine measures are not based on scientific analysis or epidemiological data," and insisted that exceptions to the quarantine pass should be made for facilities with good ventilation through a ventilation grading system.

In this regard, Professor Lee appeared on KBS Radio's 'Choi Young-il's Current Affairs Headquarters' on the 12th and said, "(The business restrictions and quarantine pass) were implemented, and since then, the COVID-19 situation has improved, severe cases have decreased, and these policies are saving lives, so I cannot speak like that." He directly challenged Candidate Yoon, saying, "If those people (Yoon's side) take power and the situation worsens, they will have no choice but to implement the same policies. I want to hear what they will say then."

However, regarding the 'ventilation grading system by facility' proposed by Candidate Yoon, he said, "I also agree. We have already submitted opinions, and it is indeed a very important area."

Regarding the conflict triggered by the recent court's suspension of the youth quarantine pass introduction, he acknowledged, "I admit that discussions are necessary to gain national consensus," but expressed concern, saying, "However, if quarantine policies are halted midway through injunction approvals, the policy itself will inevitably be nullified. Quarantine is a matter of urgent importance, but it takes several months to wait for the court's judgment."

Professor Lee predicted that the nullification of the quarantine pass would result in strengthened social distancing. He pointed out, "Now that the quarantine pass is being applied, the number of people allowed per unit area is not being restricted. However, if unvaccinated and vaccinated people are mixed, the only solution is to reduce the number per unit area," adding, "In that case, operators of multi-use facilities will inevitably suffer damage."

He continued, "The courts, media, and political circles hope for simple explanations, but all scientific and medical facts involve many concepts of probability, whether high or low," and added, "There are complex and intertwined interests. It is difficult to explain quarantine passes, social distancing, and vaccination separately. If you ask to explain each effect as a percentage, in fact, no country can do that. They must all work together to create synergy, reducing the scale of the outbreak and improving the situation."

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