Rising Trend of COVID-19 Imported Cases... Health Authorities Maintain "Special Entry Procedures" Policy

by Yoo Jaehoon

Published 20 Jun.2020 16:20(KST)

On the 19th, when the government expanded the special entry procedures to all incoming travelers worldwide to prevent the influx of COVID-19, passengers arriving on a passenger flight from Frankfurt, Germany, at Terminal 1 of Incheon International Airport underwent the special entry procedures. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Je-hoon] Amid a recent increase in overseas-imported cases among confirmed COVID-19 patients, health authorities have announced that they will maintain the current special entry procedures instead of implementing additional measures such as entry bans.

On the 20th, Kwon Jun-wook, Deputy Director of the Central Disease Control Headquarters, stated at a briefing held in Osong, Chungbuk, "Although there may be a matter of scale, there is no need to be overly concerned about the mere detection of confirmed cases."

Recently, the number of confirmed cases among overseas arrivals has been sharply increasing. As of 9 a.m. on this day, the number of overseas-imported cases totaled 31, marking the highest since April 5 of this year, when 40 cases were recorded.

Deputy Director Kwon said, "Basically, if we block entry, it also restricts the entry of our own citizens," adding, "We will continue to maintain the policy of managing COVID-19 through special entry procedures, while internally preparing separate measures in case the consumption of manpower and resources increases."

The government had previously mandated a two-week self-quarantine for all entrants starting in April. Additionally, a 'self-diagnosis app' is installed on smartphones to monitor the health status and residence of entrants in real time.