GOV’T TOUGHENS QUARANTINE MEASURES

[Anchor Lead]

The government raised social distancing rules to the current level three weeks ago and the tougher restrictions have led to a drop in COVID-19 infections. However, the decrease is not still considerable and Health authorities will toughen quarantine measures at high-risk facilities, and expand the ban on private gatherings of five people or over across the country.

[Pkg]

In December, 14 nursing hospitals were placed under cohort isolation, or a lockdown.
About 1,000 infections and nearly 100 COVID-19 deaths were reported from those facilities. They accommodated high-risk groups and infected patients who couldn't be transferred to treatment hospitals at a proper time due to the shortage of sickbeds.
Some contracted the virus while they were staying with the infected during the full-scale isolation. This is why the government announced stronger quarantine measures to prevent massive group infections at nursing hospitals. Employees of such facilities across the nation have to take COVID-19 tests every week. Visitors to high-risk facilities will be required to receive tests. When infections occur, infected patients and those who come into close contact with them will be isolated and managed separately from non-infected people. This is to block additional transmissions inside the facility and provide timely treatment to the infected. Health authorities believe such measures at high-risk facilities and reduced contact between individuals will help reduce the COVID-19 spread. The average single-day caseload continued to increase over the past month, even after social distancing rules were upgraded to the current level. It began dropping recently, after three weeks of elevated social distancing. The number of new cluster infections has more than halved, compared to a week earlier. The basic reproduction number also dipped, from 1.1 to 1.0, indicating a single COVID-19 patient generates fewer secondary infections.

[Soundbite] SOHN YOUNG-RAE(CENTRAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT HQs) : "These two weeks will be a critical juncture in determining the future of this year’s battle against the COVID-19 pandemic. The third wave of the virus will begin waning if we work together for two more weeks."

The ban on private gatherings of five people or more, which has been in effect in the capital area, will be expanded to the rest of the nation starting Monday. The current social distancing rules and special anti-virus measures will also be extended for two more weeks. However, an operation ban on outdoor winter sports facilities and small-size private academies in the capital area will be partially eased, allowing them to hold in-person classes for up to nine people. Disputes continue regarding the government measure’s fairness. A petition calling for partial easing of the operation ban on indoor sports facilities in the capital region garnered over 100,000 signatures.