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| 2022-04-15 13:55:18
(2nd LD) coronavirus-additional cases
(2nd LD) S. Korea to fully lift COVID-19 quarantine in late May: KDCA
(ATTN: UPDATES throughout with more details on post-omicron scheme; INCORPORATES earlier story under the same slug; RESTRUCTURES; TRIMS)
SEOUL, April 15 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will fully lift the seven-day mandatory quarantine for COVID-19 patients starting in late May, the public health agency said Friday.
The government will also lower the COVID-19 infectious disease level by one notch to the second-highest level out of the four-tier system, allowing patients to receive treatment at local clinics and hospitals like an endemic disease, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.
The KDCA unveiled the "post-omicron" road map as South Korea prepares to return to normalcy amid a waning virus wave, with the daily infections marking a modest decline.
"We have come to fully understand the characteristics of omicron and equip ourselves with effective weapons like vaccines and treatment," the government headquarters on the COVID-19 response said in a release.
"We will push for a return to the general medical system where people can get the diagnosis and treatment at local clinics and hospitals and enjoy everyday life even if they get infected with COVID-19," it said.
Earlier in the day, the government announced it will lift all COVID-19 social distancing rules, except the mask mandate, starting next week, in the first big step toward post-pandemic days since the outbreak of the novel virus two years ago.
Under the road map, COVID-19 will be downgraded to Class 2 from Class 1, starting March 25. But there will be a tentative four-week "transition period" to allow the new system to sink in. Once that period ends, all medical systems will return to operating as normal.
The protracted COVID-19-driven overload has taken its toll on the country's general medical system, and the government has been trying to improve the situation.
The downgrade of the classification level means the authorities no longer have to oblige patients to quarantine and make reports to the health agency on their health status. It also removes the requirement for at-home treatment.
Travelers entering South Korea will only need to submit one negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test result on the first day of their arrival.
The post-omicron scheme came as South Korea has seen a marked fall in daily COVID-19 cases after the virus curve peaked at more than 620,000 in mid-March.
Starting Monday, the midnight business hour curfew for restaurants, cafes and other small businesses will be completely lifted. The same will apply to the 10-person cap on the size of private gatherings, Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said.
The mask mandate will stay for now as the government will carefully monitor the virus situation over the next two weeks, Kim said.
South Korea first introduced social distancing measures in March 2020. At one point, the restrictions were tightened to only allow two people to meet at night and only allow takeout at cafes.
On Friday, South Korea reported 125,846 new COVID-19 infections, including 14 cases from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 16,104,869, the KDCA said.
The death toll from COVID-19 came to 20,616, up 264 from Thursday. The fatality rate stood at 0.13 percent.
The number of critically ill patients reached 999, up 37 from the previous day.
As of midnight Thursday, 44.52 million, or 86.8 percent out of the population, had been fully vaccinated with two shots, and 32.97 million had received the first booster shots, representing 64.3 percent, the KDCA said. The number of those who got their second booster shots came to 356,651, accounting for 0.7 percent.
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