發布日期:2023-02-01 10:29:31
An inbound traveler at Incheon International Airport Terminal 2 on July 20 takes a COVID-19 test. Yonhap
By Ko Dong-hwan
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) has reinstated a COVID-19 quarantine regulation that requires those who arrive in Korea to take a PCR test upon arrival or within one day of their arrival instead of within three days, as the numbers of new daily infections have surged in the country.
The new measure becomes effective from Monday.
Starting in June, the health authority had eased the regulation on incoming travelers, requiring them instead to take the test within three days of their arrival, as the numbers of new daily infections in the country had been declining since reaching the peak of the fifth wave in March.
However, the weekly counts of new COVID-19 infections started doubling at the beginning of this month due to the arrival of Omicron subvariants BA.5 and BA.2.75. Experts predict that the number of infections in the pandemic's sixth wave here could rise to 300,000 per day in mid-August.
The daily number of infections coming in from overseas has been steady, at around 300 over the past month. In the past week (July 17-23), the daily tally of infections coming in from overseas ranged from 293 to 429, with the latest figure from Saturday at 333. Since the first COVID-19 infection was reported in the country in January 2020, 429 is the highest number of infections coming in from inbound travelers. The record before was 406 from Jan. 14 of this year.
The reasons behind the high number of infections among inbound travelers include a spike in the sheer number of inbound and outbound travelers following the easing of travel restrictions overlapping with the summer vacation season, which kicked off around June this year. Other reasons boosting the number of inbound travelers here are that some large-scale K-pop concerts have started hosting audiences for the first time in over two years, as well as the central government's increasing demand for migrant workers in order to resolve certain labor shortages.
Starting in June, inbound travelers had been recommended by the KDCA to take a rapid antigen test within six to seven days of their arrival ― replacing a previously mandatory measure. But the recommendation has not been widely followed, according to the authority.
The number of daily new COVID-19 infections for Saturday was 65,433, down 3,118 from the previous day but 1.6 times the figure of the week before, and 3.2 times that of two weeks before. The number of COVID-19 patients in a serious condition was 146 on Sunday, the highest number in 51 days.
Among inbound travelers, Korean nationals, as well as foreign nationals who are residing in Korea, can take PCR tests for free at health centers in districts near where they live. People of foreign nationality in the country ― for short-term stays ― must pay for their tests.