GOV'T MEASURES AGAINST COVID-19

[Anchor Lead]

The number of daily coronavirus cases in Korea has declined slightly due to a decrease in testing on Sunday. However, the risk of infections spreading again remains high. The government has decided to set up testing stations in areas with large populations of migrant workers and expand staff in charge of virus prevention at schools.

[Pkg]

Korea recorded 332 cases on Monday, falling below 400 due to a decrease in testing over the weekend. However, the outbreak could flare up again at any time as infections at private gatherings, hospitals and workplaces remain rampant. A new cluster outbreak has been confirmed at Yongin City Hall's sports club. One judo athlete was first confirmed last Friday. So far the case count has reached 14. Fourteen more cases have been added to an outbreak among migrant workers at a plastic factory in Namyangju, bringing the total caseload to 162. More than 200 cases linked to Suncheonhyang University Hospital have been confirmed nationwide after five new cases were detected in just one day. The virus reproduction rate indicating how many people a single infected person can infect has risen to 1.1. The rate fell to 0.79 in January, but surpassed 1 again after the Lunar New Year holiday, raising concerns over another wave of COVID-19. The government says it will consider raising the social distancing level if necessary according to the number of infections this week. Authorities will also set up temporary testing stations in 14 areas with large populations of migrant workers. Meanwhile, the government has said the Pfizer vaccine is to arrive in Korea this Friday. Some 58,500 doses will be administered to health care workers first the following day.