'If Not in the Intensive Care Group, You Must Take Care Yourself'... Confusion Over the Changed New Quarantine System

Government to Implement New Quarantine System from the 10th
Home Treatment Patients 'Dualized'... Focus on Intensive Management of High-Risk Groups with High Severity Rates
Quarantine Measures Focused on 'Self' with Reduced Government Responsibility... Some Quarantine Duties Also Shared with Schools
Criticism Arises Over Looser Management of Confirmed Cases and Contacts... Accused of Practically 'Neglecting' Them

On the 8th, when the number of new COVID-19 cases remained in the 30,000s for the fourth consecutive day, citizens lined up at the temporary screening clinic in front of Seoul Station. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoon Seul-gi] The government has announced that it will implement a new quarantine system starting from the 10th to respond to the COVID-19 Omicron variant. The plan is to split home treatment patients into intensive management groups and general management groups to strengthen health monitoring for high-risk groups with a high rate of severe cases, but concerns have been raised that blind spots may occur.

The quarantine authorities are shifting their response strategy to prevent the spread of Omicron. In the process, so-called 'self' home treatment is also included, increasing citizens' anxiety. There is concern about whether proper treatment can be provided.

Jung Eun-kyung, head of the Central Disease Control Headquarters (Director of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency), announced at the regular briefing of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) on the 7th that they plan to shift the quarantine and medical management system to one that fits the characteristics of the Omicron variant.

Director Jung said, "According to predictions by the KDCA and various domestic and international experts, due to the impact of the Omicron variant, the number of confirmed cases in Korea is expected to reach between 130,000 and 170,000 by the end of February. It is now time to introduce a quarantine and medical management system that corresponds to the characteristics of the Omicron variant. We plan to shift the quarantine response strategy from the existing proactive and meticulous 3T (Testing, Tracing, Treatment) strategy to one that focuses on maintaining essential social functions while responding to the occurrence of a large number of confirmed cases and isolations."

The reorganization plan aims to reduce the burden on the quarantine and medical system caused by the surge in confirmed cases, and it appears to intend to concentrate limited medical resources on managing high-risk groups in a situation where more than 100,000 confirmed cases per day are expected.

The CDSCH decided to limit health monitoring of home treatment patients twice a day to the 'intensive management group,' which includes those aged 60 and over, patients in their 50s with underlying conditions, and immunocompromised individuals. As a result, asymptomatic or mild patients under 60 who are not included in this group will enter 'self' home treatment.

On the 7th, citizens visited a temporary COVID-19 screening site installed near the Express Bus Terminal in Seocho-gu, Seoul. According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, as of midnight on the same day, the number of new confirmed cases increased by 35,286, bringing the total to 1,044,963. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

To improve the efficiency of basic epidemiological investigations, a 'self-reporting questionnaire' will also be introduced, where confirmed patients directly record their movement routes, personal information, and work environment. Patients will access a survey URL to enter information about contacts. The GPS-based self-quarantine app will be abolished, and response personnel will be converted to quarantine and home treatment staff. The cohabiting family isolation system will also be simplified: regardless of vaccination status, co-isolation will last for 7 days with no additional isolation afterward, and essential outings will be permitted.

The problem is that focusing management on high-risk groups may create quarantine blind spots for young people with underlying conditions, single-person households unfamiliar with digital devices, pregnant women, and others. Recently, a second-year high school student, Song Mo (17), who had been receiving home treatment for a week after contracting COVID-19, died four days after being released from isolation, raising concerns about gaps in home treatment. Entrusting the quarantine system to citizens' autonomy could effectively mean neglect.

The Ministry of Education also announced the 2022 first semester quarantine and academic operation plan on the same day. While normal attendance for elementary, middle, and high schools is the principle, if 3% of the entire student body is confirmed with COVID-19 or if more than 15% of students cannot attend school due to isolation or other reasons (the 3%·15% rule), face-to-face educational activities such as after-school classes and in-person classes may be reduced. Additionally, if confirmed cases occur within a school, the school must classify contacts independently according to standards set by quarantine authorities and conduct PCR (polymerase chain reaction) tests or rapid antigen tests.

Since the plan includes that confirmed cases are managed by quarantine authorities but contacts must be investigated directly by schools, teacher organizations have expressed opposition. The Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU) issued a statement on the 7th, calling it a "school quarantine reinforcement plan" that effectively instructs schools to perform the role of quarantine authorities, warning that excessive quarantine duties and responsibilities could paralyze school educational activities. They criticized the government for emphasizing self-quarantine while shifting quarantine responsibilities onto schools.

Citizens also responded that the new quarantine system is confusing. A 20-year-old office worker, Mr. A, said, "The quarantine policies keep changing, so it's confusing. I understand that the medical system is burdened as confirmed cases increase, but self-quarantine is unsettling. It's called a self-epidemiological survey, but there is no one monitoring it, so people could lie."

Another office worker in his 30s, Mr. Kim, said, "Nowadays, not everyone can get a PCR test. If the government doesn't conduct epidemiological investigations in this situation, there could be cases where people don't even know they are confirmed. Even if social distancing and the quarantine pass (vaccination certificate and negative test confirmation system) remain, what's the use if confirmed cases are not managed properly?"

Meanwhile, as criticisms arise that social distancing and the quarantine pass policies are losing effectiveness amid the relaxed quarantine and medical system, the government stated that it will "monitor the epidemic situation and review comprehensively." Son Young-rae, head of the Social Strategy Division of the Central Accident Response Headquarters at the Ministry of Health and Welfare, said at a background briefing on the 8th, "Regarding social distancing, we said we would evaluate the epidemic situation and comprehensively review whether easing is possible by considering the severity rate, fatality rate, and medical system capacity. We will also comprehensively review whether there are any changes to the quarantine pass."

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