A shopping complex in Hanam, east of Seoul, is packed with people on May 5, 2023. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, May 8 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s new coronavirus cases fell below 10,000 on Monday due mainly to fewer tests over the weekend as the country is considering further easing antivirus curbs to regain normalcy.
The country reported 8,164 cases, including 33 imported cases, bringing the total caseload to 31,285,910, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.
Monday’s tally was down from 14,742 cases a day earlier but is higher than the previous Monday’s 5,774 cases.
The country added seven COVID-19 deaths Monday, raising the death toll to 34,534.
The number of critically ill patients came to 137, up from 133 a day earlier, the KDCA said.
In March, South Korea lifted the mask mandate for public transportation, with it only remaining for medical facilities, pharmacies and facilities vulnerable to infections.
The government is also considering shortening the mandatory virus isolation period to five days from the current seven later this week, in line with the World Health Organization’s recent announcement that COVID-19 is no longer a global health emergency.
The health authorities have been considering shortening the mandatory isolation period from the current seven days to five.
However, during a meeting of an advisory committee on infectious diseases Monday, many experts suggested lifting the isolation requirement altogether and transforming it into a recommendation.
The government is also reportedly reviewing the possibility of downgrading the COVID-19 crisis alert level from the current highest to the second-highest.
Those measures are expected to be determined during a government disease response meeting as early as this week, officials said.
(Yonhap)
