dailies-editorials (2)
(EDITORIAL from Korea Times on Nov. 9)
Daunting task ahead
More efforts needed to get back to normal life
Worries are growing over the increasing number of new infections and deaths from COVID-19. The upsurge had been anticipated since the nation shifted to the "Living with COVID-19" plan from Nov. 1. At stake is how to get people to return to normal life without resorting to strict quarantine and distancing rules again. If necessary, the government should administer booster vaccine shots to increase the effectiveness of inoculations against the coronavirus.
New infections of COVID-19 reached 1,760 Sunday, raising the total caseload to 381,694. Though the figure represented a decrease from the previous day's 2,224 and the first fall in numbers to below 2,000 in six days, it was mainly due to fewer tests being given over the weekend. Since the adoption of the new virus management system, the number of daily infections has mostly remained in the 2,000 range, even reaching 3,000 once.
The health authorities expect the situation will stabilize in due time should the vaccinations take effect and the new system take root, even though the number of new infections and deaths will increase for a while. More than 41.52 million people or 80.9 percent of the population has received at least one vaccine shot so far, while 76 percent of the population have been fully vaccinated.
Yet the situation does not seem to be so favorable. For starters, the reproduction index stood at 1.2, Sunday, the highest since mid-July, heralding a surge in infections. Also the number of critically ill patients has continued to increase, reaching 409. Thirteen more deaths were confirmed, lifting the death toll to 2,980 with the fatality rate standing at 0.78 percent.
The health authorities said the present medical system can deal with a maximum 5,000 daily new infections under the "Living with COVID-19" regime. Experts, however, warn that the number of daily new patients will soon reach 5,000 or more sometime this month, prompted by the rapid rise in mobility and contacts under the new quarantine scheme.
Recent overseas cases give a warning that the nation might face an ever serious situation. Given this, it is desirable for the government to issue an administrative order to secure sufficient hospital beds in Seoul and its metropolitan region to accommodate up to 10,000 new patients a day. Securing enough hospital beds is especially significant under the new system focusing on caring for critically ill patients.
On Saturday, the World Health Organization (WHO) said the number of new infections in Europe recently reached a record level and up to 500,000 more people could die by February. It pointed to low vaccination rates coupled with eased quarantine measures as the reason for the aggravating situation. We need to learn a lesson from the European case and make combined efforts to minimize all possible damage.
Even if 90 percent of the people get fully vaccinated, several millions of people have yet to get their shots. The majority of those dying were found to be among those who did not get vaccinated. While speeding up the vaccination of adults, the health authorities should make more efforts to vaccinate teenagers as well, ahead of the reopening of in-person classes from Nov. 22. People should also maintain the basic personal hygiene practices of washing their hands, wearing masks and staying away from social gatherings.
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