Outdoor Mask Mandate Lifted from May 2... Prime Minister Kim: "Difficult to Ignore Public Discomfort" (Update)

COVID-19 Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters Meeting

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum is speaking at the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meeting on COVID-19 response held at the Government Seoul Office Building on April 29, 2022. Photo by Yonhap News.

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Son Seon-hee] The government has lifted the outdoor mask-wearing mandate starting from the 2nd of next month. However, masks must still be worn at gatherings of 50 or more people, such as rallies, performances, and sports event viewings. The indoor mask-wearing mandate will remain in place for the time being.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum chaired the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meeting on the 29th at the Government Seoul Office and announced these measures. Prime Minister Kim explained the background, saying, "Although there were some concerns, we judged that we could no longer ignore the frustration and inconvenience of citizens who could not even remove masks while walking alone or during family outings."

However, Prime Minister Kim stated, "Considering the infection risk based on crowd density and shouting behavior, the current mask-wearing mandate will be maintained at gatherings, performances, and sports event viewings with 50 or more attendees," and added, "For those showing COVID-19 symptoms or in high-risk groups, and in situations where maintaining a distance of more than 1 meter is impossible among large crowds or where droplet generation is high, outdoor mask-wearing is strongly recommended."

Earlier, the Presidential Transition Committee had effectively opposed lifting the outdoor mask mandate at this time, but it appears the current government made the decision after comprehensively assessing the quarantine situation.

Regarding the recent quarantine and medical situation, Prime Minister Kim said, "It is certainly stabilizing," and added, "Compared to the Omicron peak period, the number of confirmed cases is less than 20%, severe cases have decreased by more than half, and especially, the utilization rate of severe care beds has dropped to the 20% range for the first time in 10 weeks." He expressed gratitude, saying, "The improvement in the current quarantine situation and the stabilization of medical response are precious results created by the united efforts of the citizens who cooperated with quarantine measures and the medical staff who devoted themselves to overcoming the crisis."

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