Government "Additional 1 Million Doses of Oral Antiviral Secured... June International Flights Increased by 230 Weekly"

Lee Sang-min, 2nd Deputy Director, Chairs First Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters Meeting... "Prescription of Therapeutics Expanded to Patients Aged 12 and Over with Underlying Conditions"
International Flights in June Increase to 762 Operations

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The government has decided to secure an additional 1 million doses of oral COVID-19 treatments and expand the prescription eligibility to include patients aged 12 and older with underlying conditions. Considering the demand for overseas travel, the number of international flights will be increased from 100 flights per week to 230 flights per week by June.

Lee Sang-min, the 2nd Deputy Head of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters (CDSCH) and Minister of the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, stated during the CDSCH meeting on the 13th, "A subvariant with 20-30% higher transmissibility than Omicron has been detected domestically, and the number of deaths in nursing hospitals and care facilities remains relatively high." He also announced plans to strengthen national responsibility for vaccine adverse reactions and to establish a specialized research institute related to this. The government will raise the medical expense compensation and support limit from 30 million KRW to 50 million KRW, and increase the death condolence payment from 50 million KRW to 100 million KRW.

Deputy Lee said, "To strengthen national responsibility for vaccine adverse reactions, we will expand the diseases eligible for compensation and support, increase the support amounts, and establish a specialized research institute to reinforce scientific evidence related to vaccine safety."

Additionally, the government plans to increase the number of international flights by June from the initially planned 100 flights per week to 230 flights per week, considering overseas travel demand. Accordingly, the weekly number of flights in June is expected to rise to 762.

The management system for overseas arrivals will also be reorganized. Starting from the 23rd, in addition to PCR tests, rapid antigen tests will be included in pre-entry testing to improve convenience and reduce cost burdens.

Deputy Lee explained, "From July 1st, the total number of tests will be reduced from three to two, and the PCR test currently required on the day of entry will be adjusted to be conducted within three days. The vaccination completion criteria for entrants aged 12 to 17 will be changed to those who have received two doses and passed 14 days. Children under 12 years old (currently under 6 years old) entering with fully vaccinated guardians will be exempt from quarantine."

Meanwhile, the average daily number of confirmed cases over the past week was about 36,000, a 12.7% decrease compared to the previous week. The number of critically ill patients has remained in the 300s for four consecutive days, and the ICU bed occupancy rate has also stayed in the 10% range for four days. The average number of deaths over the past week was 57, remaining below 100 for two consecutive weeks.

Deputy Lee emphasized, "Following the '100-Day Emergency Response Roadmap for COVID-19' announced last month by the Presidential Transition Committee, we will enhance public trust through advanced scientific quarantine measures based on objective data and expert opinions."

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