COVID-19 Quarantine Shortened from 7 to 5 Days This Month... Crisis Level to Be Lowered

If the alert level lowers from 'Severe' to 'Caution'
Temporary Screening Clinics to Suspend Operations
Full Lifting of Quarantine Measures Expected in July

As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to stabilize, it is expected that the domestic infectious disease crisis level, currently at the 'Severe' stage, will be lowered to the 'Alert' stage later this month. If the crisis level is lowered, the current 7-day isolation requirement for confirmed cases will be shortened to 5 days, and temporary screening clinics operated by local governments will be closed.

As the skies, which were closed due to COVID-19, have reopened, air travel demand is recovering in full swing. Travelers visiting the international terminal at Gimpo International Airport in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, are moving toward the departure hall. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

According to quarantine authorities and local governments on the 2nd, the timing for lowering the crisis level is expected to be around the 11th at the earliest. The World Health Organization (WHO) Emergency Committee is discussing the termination of the Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), and major countries such as the United States are expected to decide on lifting their emergency declarations around this time. In fact, the WHO is widely expected to lift the emergency status ahead of the 76th World Health Assembly at the end of this month. Previously, the quarantine authorities presented a roadmap stating that they would decide on lowering the crisis level after reviewing the WHO’s decision and the trends in major countries, so South Korea is likely to follow the same course.

The fact that the domestic COVID-19 situation has remained stable without significant spread despite measures such as the full lifting of mask mandates except in some high-risk facilities also serves as a basis for lowering the crisis level. Although the spread of 'revenge tourism' during the Labor Day holiday in China has emerged as a variable, it is widely expected that it will not have a major impact on South Korea, given the experience in responding to overseas inflows earlier this year. The quarantine authorities have also maintained the weekly COVID-19 risk level at 'Low' since the third week of January.

The biggest change expected when the domestic infectious disease crisis level is lowered to 'Alert' is the shortening of the isolation period. The current 7-day isolation period for confirmed cases will be reduced to 5 days. This decision considered the reduced transmission risk of the currently circulating variant and the fact that many countries manage the situation stably with isolation as a recommendation rather than a requirement. Additionally, the positive culture rate during days 6 to 8 after symptom onset is 13.3%, which is about 2.6 times lower than the 35.0% rate during days 4 to 5, minimizing the burden that shortening the isolation period would place on quarantine efforts.

Temporary screening clinics operated by local governments will be closed. However, screening clinics at public health centers will remain in operation, and rapid antigen tests (RAT) for symptomatic individuals at medical institutions will continue to be provided free of charge as before. Currently, nationally designated hospital beds will be operated on a reduced basis, focusing on permanent beds. The mask-wearing mandate in high-risk facilities such as medical institutions will be maintained for the time being, even if the crisis level is lowered. Local governments have prepared 'stepwise response plans' accordingly to minimize confusion in medical settings.

The complete lifting of quarantine measures is expected to coincide with the anticipated downgrade of COVID-19’s legal infectious disease classification around July. If COVID-19, currently classified as a Level 2 disease, is downgraded to Level 4 (the same level as influenza), quarantine measures such as mask-wearing, isolation of confirmed cases, and operation of screening clinics?except for preemptive testing in high-risk facilities?will be fully lifted, returning society to the pre-COVID-19 state.

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