Increasing COVID-19 Cases Among Foreigners with Low Vaccination Rates... Health Authorities Recommend Third Dose Vaccination

On the 18th, when 4,072 new COVID-19 cases were reported, the temporary screening clinic in front of Seoul City Hall was crowded with citizens. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] As the Omicron variant of COVID-19 spreads mainly among the US Forces Korea and their families in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, and the infection rate among foreigners with low third-dose vaccination rates increases, health authorities have begun preparing measures to raise the vaccination rate among foreigners in Korea.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) announced at a regular briefing on the 19th that "we received and discussed the 'Plan to Promote Third Dose Vaccination and Quarantine Management for Foreign Workers' from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of the Interior and Safety, Ministry of Employment and Labor, and Ministry of Gender Equality and Family."

The CDSCH explained, "Since the fourth week of December, confirmed cases related to US military bases in Pyeongtaek, Gunsan, and Osan have been continuously increasing, and cluster outbreaks frequently occur at workplaces and foreign acquaintances' gatherings."

As of the second week of January (January 9?15), the total number of confirmed foreign residents in Korea was 3,510, accounting for 14.2% of all cases. The proportion of confirmed foreign residents had been declining since September last year but reversed to an upward trend from the fourth week of December (3.5%), rising weekly from 3.5% to 5.2%, then 8.3%, and sharply increasing to 14.2% last week.

Although the proportion of foreign confirmed cases has increased, their vaccination rate remains lower than that of Koreans. In particular, the third-dose vaccination rate is 44.4% for Koreans but only 28.7% for foreigners.

According to the CDSCH, the third-dose vaccination rate among foreigners is about 1.5 times lower than that of Koreans across all age groups. Among foreigners diagnosed with COVID-19, 68.3% were either unvaccinated or had only completed the first dose.

Health authorities plan to strengthen quarantine management at US military bases and related areas, workplaces with many foreign workers, and focus on increasing vaccination rates in local governments where many foreign confirmed cases occur.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor has decided to exclude foreign employment businesses where all workers have completed the third dose from quarantine inspections. Additionally, when assigning new foreign workers, these workplaces will receive bonus points and support for quarantine supplies such as masks.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs requested the US Embassy in Korea on the 18th to disclose daily confirmed case statistics by US military base and urged the US Forces Korea to encourage third-dose vaccinations. The Ministry of Justice plans to form an inspection team of about 200 members to focus on checking compliance with quarantine guidelines in foreign collective residences, entertainment, and massage establishments.

Currently, among approximately 210,000 employment-permitted workers residing in Korea, about 170,000 (80.4%) have completed the second dose of vaccination.

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