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As the omicron mutation becomes the dominant species, the number of patients is rapidly increasing. Today (25th), the number of new confirmed cases is around 9,000, which is expected to break a new record. The problem is, we're just starting to spread. The government analyzed that the number of confirmed cases would increase in a short period of time, putting a burden on quarantine and medical response.



By Jung Young-tae, staff reporter.



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As of 9 pm last night, a total of 7,437 new cases of COVID-19 across the country were counted.



This is an increase of 1,762 more than the number of the same time the day before, but as of midnight, when the counting ends, it is expected that the number of new confirmed cases per day will exceed the all-time high of 7,848.



Considering the recent trend in the number of confirmed cases, there is even a possibility that it will record 9,000 for the first time.



Among these, the detection rate of Omicron nationwide last week was 50.3%.



In particular, in the Honam region, it was 82.3%, and in the Gyeongbuk region, it reached 69.6%.



The metropolitan area and Chungcheong area, which recorded 41%, are also expected to be dominant this week.



As a result of a domestic study, the transmission power of Omicron was more than twice that of the delta mutation, and the death rate among confirmed patients was relatively low at 0.16%.



It was one-fifth of the delta of 0.8%, but slightly higher than the 0.1% seasonal flu.



However, if there are more than 20,000 to 30,000 confirmed cases per day, the social damage may be greater.



[Jung Eun-kyung/Director of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: If a large-scale outbreak occurs within a short period of time, it can become a serious burden for quarantine and medical response.

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The government believes that it will not be easy to stop the explosion of confirmed cases.



[Kim Bu-gyeom/Prime Minister: In the case of countries that experienced Omicron before us, the trend is clearly showing that the number of confirmed cases increases as soon as the ratio exceeds 60%.]



The first turning point is the Lunar New Year holiday.



The government has requested that people refrain from visiting their hometown as much as possible and complete the third dose in advance if they inevitably return to their hometown.