Senior health official warns that the pandemic “could go on and on” if not enough people are vaccinated



[ad_1]

A medical staff member wearing protective gear takes a swab from a woman to test for Covid-19 at a temporary testing station in Seoul, South Korea, on December 14.
A member of medical staff in protective gear takes a swab from a woman to test for Covid-19 at a temporary testing station in Seoul, South Korea, on December 14. Jung Yeon-je / AFP / Getty Images

South Korea reported 718 new cases of Covid-19 on Sunday, according to a press release issued by the Korean Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) on Monday.

Among the new cases, 682 were transmitted locally, of which 473 were reported in the Seoul metropolitan area, according to the KDCA statement. This brings the nation’s total number of cases to 43,484.

In addition, seven patients died on Sunday, bringing the death toll to 587, the statement added.

Tighter restrictions warning: On Sunday, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said officials will begin reviewing the possibility of raising social distancing measures to level 3, the highest level in South Korea’s Covid-19 response, which will close most of the facilities and restrict meetings to 10 people. or less.

In addition, the government will secure more than 10,000 hospital beds over the next three weeks, according to Health Minister Park Neung-hoo.

[ad_2]