Concerns Grow Over 'Seol Nightmare' Amid Omicron Dominance

Detection rate expected to exceed 50% this weekend
New confirmed cases rise to 6,769

On the 21st, when 6,769 new COVID-19 cases were reported, citizens visiting the temporary screening clinic at Sogang University Station in Mapo-gu, Seoul, were waiting to get tested. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] The dominance of the Omicron COVID-19 variant has finally become a reality. Just as the first-ever 3,000-level daily cases were reported right after last year's Chuseok holiday, there are concerns about a surge in cases following the Lunar New Year holiday, a "Lunar New Year holiday nightmare."

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meeting on the morning of the 21st, "The Omicron assault has officially begun," adding, "The number of confirmed cases has been rising sharply for several days, and Omicron has already become the dominant variant in Gwangju, Jeonnam, and Pyeongtaek areas of Gyeonggi Province." It is expected that the dominance of Omicron, with a detection rate exceeding 50%, will become a nationwide reality over this weekend.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters, as of midnight on the same day, the number of new confirmed cases was 6,769, an increase of 167 from the previous day. Since the highly transmissible Omicron variant is becoming dominant, the government’s threshold of 7,000 cases as the criterion for the Omicron response phase is considered a matter of time.

Although the oral COVID-19 treatment drug Paxlovid has been introduced, prescriptions have been sluggish, with only 109 patients treated by the 20th. The government plans to expand distribution by lowering the eligible age for treatment from 65 to 60 and increasing prescription institutions to include long-term care hospitals and facilities, as well as infectious disease-dedicated hospitals.

For Omicron-dominant areas such as Gwangju, Jeonnam, and Pyeongtaek and Anseong cities in Gyeonggi Province, the Omicron response system will be prioritized starting from the 26th. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests will be conducted only for high-risk groups such as the elderly and those with epidemiological links. For others, rapid antigen tests, which provide quick results, will be widely introduced.

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