As Omicron, a new mutant virus of Corona 19, spreads rapidly in Korea, it is predicted that it will become the dominant species on the 21st, a week later.
Accordingly, the government will reduce the self-quarantine period from the current 10 days to 7 days and use rapid antigen testing (test kits) widely instead of gene amplification (PCR) testing if the Omicron pandemic becomes a reality, with the number of confirmed cases exceeding 7,000 a day again. We have decided to shift the COVID-19 quarantine system to focus on efficiency.
A local hospital will also be able to test and treat COVID-19, and plans to vaccinate children aged 5-11 years who are not currently eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine will be prepared within the next month.
The government announced today (14th) the 'Omicron spread response strategy for sustainable daily recovery', which shifts the paradigm of quarantine to 'autonomy and responsibility' if Omicron mutation leads to COVID-19 infection.
The government predicts that the share of domestic Omicron mutations, which is currently about 20%, will exceed 50% by the 21st, a week later. Under the circumstances, we decided that the current quarantine system, which blocks the source of infection through strict testing and isolation, could not sustain society.
According to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) mathematical model, the share of Omicron mutations in Korea exceeds 50% by the 21st, and even if social distancing measures are maintained at the current level, the number of confirmed cases will increase to about 10,000 by the end of this month.
It is also predicted that the number of confirmed cases per day will increase by up to 20,000 to 30,000 if social distancing measures are eased.
Accordingly, the government plans to implement the quarantine system by dividing it into 'Omicron preparation stage' and 'Omicron response stage'.
The 'preparation stage' is a time to lay the foundation for moving to the 'response stage' while suppressing the number of confirmed cases as much as possible until just before Omicron dominates.
The government plans to operate the preparation stage until the daily number of confirmed cases rises to 5,000.
If there are 5,000 confirmed cases per day, it is considered that the Omicron mutation accounts for more than 50% of the total number of COVID-19 infections, and it is considered to have begun to dominate.
Omicron is 2-3 times faster than the delta mutation, so once it dominates, the number of confirmed cases is expected to increase exponentially.
The government plans to enter the 'response stage' when the number of daily confirmed cases exceeds approximately 7,000.
In the response stage, the key is to manage high-risk groups to prevent the occurrence of serious patients, and to provide flexible quarantine that emphasizes autonomy and responsibility.
This is to maintain the daily life as much as possible to minimize social and economic damage while stably operating the medical system.
Also, in the preparation stage, as before, all close contacts are investigated and managed, and extensive gene amplification (PCR) tests are conducted.
At the same time, we are preparing to increase the daily testing capacity from the current 750,000 to 850,000 so that we can prepare for 10,000 new cases per day.
However, in the response stage, 'choice and focus' is required.
In the response stage, PCR tests are also carried out according to priority.
The PCR test is mainly performed on symptomatic patients, high-risk groups, the elderly over 65 years of age, those with epidemiological relationships such as close contact, and those who test positive for the rapid antigen test.
Asymptomatic persons under the age of 65 should check whether or not they have been confirmed with COVID-19 through rapid antigen testing at a medical institution.
To this end, we are encouraging hospitals and hospital-level medical institutions to participate in the COVID-19 test, and promoting a plan to apply health insurance to the rapid antigen test.
The government has decided to recognize the case of negative results in the rapid antigen test as a quarantine pass.
However, in this case, the quarantine pass is only valid for 24 hours, and the results of self-examination not conducted by medical institutions are not accepted.
In the response stage, the period of home treatment and self-quarantine will be shortened from 10 days to 7 days.
A confirmed person is released from quarantine on the 7th day after confirmation, and a contact is released from quarantine on the 7th day if the PCR test is negative on the 6th day after contact.
The Vaccination Preparedness phase focuses on minimizing the number of unvaccinated people as much as possible.
To this end, we have decided to prepare a vaccination plan for about 3 million people aged 5 to 11 by mid-February.
In addition, we plan to review the necessity and timing of the fourth vaccination for immunocompromised and high-risk groups.
In the response phase, we promote the rapid introduction of an improved vaccine that is effective against omicron mutations.
In the preparation stage, separate medical institutions are operated for the treatment of COVID-19, such as life treatment centers and infectious disease hospitals.
The government prepares a 'Business Continuity Plan (BCP)' for each social sector, and plans to implement it when the response stage is reached.