GOV’T PARTIALLY EASES RESTRICTION

[Anchor Lead]

Korea reported more than 600-thousand COVID-19 cases on Thursday and more than 407,000 on Friday, far more than the government expected. Experts say the outbreak could grow further and peak later than expected, straining the nation's health care system. Meanwhile, the government has partially revised COVID-19 restrictions.

[Pkg]

The government's estimate made so far was based on the virus reproduction index, the number of infections and the vaccination rate. It does not take into account new virus variants and the effect of modified virus prevention measures, making the estimate far less credible. The future outlook remains unclear. The government believes the outbreak has started peaking and daily cases will start declining sometime next week. Authroties say the existing prediction is still valid, yet it promised to modify the prediction model as the peak could last longer than expected.

[Soundbite] Prof. Jung Jae-hun(Gachon Univ.) : "The prediction model is wrong. As the peak is becoming delayed, the size of the outbreak is growing."

When predictions go awry, confusion in the healthcare system is inevitable. Given that the number of serious cases and deaths usually starts rising 2-3 weeks later after a surge, the situation in hospitals could become dire in April.

[Soundbite] Prof. Kim Tak(Soonchunhyang Univ. Hospital Bucheon) : "It's unclear if there will be ICU beds available when the outbreak peaks and whether health workers will be able to cope with so many patients. The situation is already quite dire."

Meanwhile, the government revised some COVID-19 restrictions. The 11 p.m. business curfew remains, while private gatherings are now limited to eight instead of six.