South Korea extends business access time as Omicron cases increase | Coronavirus Plague News

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum says the expansion is necessary to reduce the spread of Omicron after the Lunar New Year celebrations.

South Korea extended its COVID-19 policy on social media on Friday for two weeks, including 9pm access to restaurants, bars and gymnasiums, amid a growing number of Omicron coronavirus species.

Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum said raising the ban, which was due to end on Sunday, was necessary to reduce the spread of Omicron for fear that the Lunar New Year holiday, which ended Wednesday, could cause illness.

“Delaying the spread of Omicron, which is gaining momentum on a daily basis, is the most important factor in this crisis,” he said at a state television conference.

New daily cases have tripled in the past two weeks, but the number of deaths and serious illnesses has dropped dramatically in a country with high vaccines.

South Korea also reported a daily increase in 27,443 new cases of COVID-19, and 24 new deaths, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said Friday.

The extension, which also includes a six-person limit on private meetings, brings a lot of pain to businesses that have been forced to close early December and endure several bans over the past two years.

Many small business owners say they are forced to take on debt to meet their obligations and complained of inadequate government support.

Although economies such as Germany and Japan have lost 15 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) in 2020, South Korea has lost 6.4 percent of its gross domestic product, according to figures from the International Monetary Fund.

Last month, more than 200 small businesses in Seoul publicly shaved their heads in protest of the government stepping up the epidemic.

South Korea in January unveiled $ 14 trillion ($ 11.75bn) to support self-employed individuals and small businesses affected by the recent growth of curbs.

About 86 percent of the 52 million people in the country are fully vaccinated, and 53.8 percent received a positive shot.

To address the problem of surgery, the government has introduced a new method of testing where only the most important groups test polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests while others are able to quickly test antigen in a hospital for early detection.

It also reduced the legal isolation period for vaccinated people who had been tested for the virus from 10 days to a week, allowing more people with less or no symptoms to receive treatment at home.

Overall, South Korea has reported 934,656 cases of COVID-19 and 6,836 deaths since the outbreak began.