New COVID-19 Cases 99,573 ... Severe Cases 480 · Deaths 58 (Update)

Nearly 500,000 Home Treatment Patients... Hospital Bed Occupancy Rate at 36.3%

On the 22nd, when 99,573 new COVID-19 cases were reported, citizens visiting the temporary screening clinic set up at Seoul Station Plaza were waiting to get tested. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] Due to the Omicron variant surge, the daily number of COVID-19 confirmed cases has remained around 100,000 for a week.

According to the Central Disease Control Headquarters on the 22nd, as of midnight, 99,573 new confirmed cases were reported, bringing the total cumulative cases to 2,157,734.

The number of new confirmed cases increased by 4,212 from the previous day's 95,361 (corrected after announcement), marking over 90,000 cases for two consecutive days. Compared to a week ago on the 15th (57,169 cases), it is 1.7 times higher, and compared to two weeks ago on the 8th (36,714 cases), it is 2.7 times higher.

With the increase in new confirmed cases, the number of critically ill patients also approached 500, recording 480 for two consecutive days. Accordingly, the nationwide COVID-19 severe bed occupancy rate rose by 0.9 percentage points from the previous day (35.4%) to 36.3% (969 out of 2,670 beds in use).

The number of deaths reported the previous day was 58, bringing the total cumulative deaths to 7,508, with a cumulative fatality rate of 0.35%.

Regarding the infection routes of new confirmed cases, 99,444 were locally transmitted, and 129 were imported cases. Among locally transmitted cases, 29,558 were in Gyeonggi, 21,769 in Seoul, and 7,771 in Incheon, with the metropolitan area accounting for 59.4% (59,098 cases) of the total.

The number of patients under home treatment continues to rise, nearing 500,000. As of midnight on the day, the number of home treatment patients was 490,322, an increase of 20,938 from the previous day (469,384).

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