"To Prevent Early Resurgence" ... COVID-19 Positive Cases' 7-Day Isolation Requirement Extended for 4 More Weeks (Update)

Review adjustments if quarantine criteria are met even before 4 weeks
Expand allowance for in-person visits at nursing hospitals

On the morning of the 13th, citizens are waiting for COVID-19 testing at the Seoul Station screening clinic. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The government has decided to extend the mandatory 7-day isolation period for those who test positive for COVID-19 by an additional four weeks. This is due to concerns that prematurely lifting the isolation requirement could accelerate a resurgence of COVID-19.

On the 17th, Prime Minister Han Deok-su chaired a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters at the Government Seoul Office and stated, "We will reassess the situation every four weeks with experts, and even before that, if the quarantine indicators meet the criteria, we will review whether to adjust the isolation requirements for confirmed cases."

On April 25, the government downgraded COVID-19’s infectious disease classification from Level 1 to Level 2 and maintained a four-week transition period until May 22 to prevent confusion on the ground. As the transition period was about to end, the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters decided to observe the quarantine situation for another four weeks before adjusting the isolation requirements. On this day, they again decided to extend the isolation obligation by four weeks, effective from the 20th.

Recently, the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases has dropped to levels seen at the end of January before the Omicron variant spread widely, and the number of critically ill patients has not reached 100 per day. Hospital bed occupancy rates have also been maintained below 10%.

As of midnight on this day, the number of new confirmed cases was 7,198, the lowest Friday figure in five months since January 21, when it was 6,764.

However, recent government expert task forces (TF) and the Infectious Disease Crisis Management Expert Committee have expressed opinions that "while some indicators such as medical response capacity have been achieved, the number of deaths has not sufficiently decreased, and easing isolation requirements could bring forward the timing of a resurgence and increase the scale of damage." It is interpreted that the quarantine authorities also believe it is not yet time to reduce or lift the isolation obligation.

While maintaining the isolation obligation for confirmed cases, the scope of daily life recovery in nursing hospitals and nursing facilities will be expanded. Prime Minister Han said, "Face-to-face visits, which were previously allowed only for those who completed vaccination, will now be permitted regardless of vaccination status," adding, "The fourth-dose vaccination rate among nursing hospital and facility residents recently exceeded 80%, and we considered the unfortunate situation where families cannot meet frequently."

For elderly residents who have completed the fourth dose, outings and overnight stays, which are currently prohibited, will also be allowed. However, considering the safety of residents living together, prior reservations for visits and PCR or rapid antigen tests for visitors will be maintained.

Prime Minister Han urged, "Thanks to the cooperation of the public, the quarantine situation remains stable, but we are not completely free from risk. Even if quarantine regulations are lifted, please strictly follow the quarantine rules with the mindset of protecting yourself from COVID-19."

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