There was no three-level increase in distance. The government has decided to extend the current steps of 2.5 in the metropolitan area and the second step in the non-metropolitan area for another six days until the 3rd of next month. It means that the number of new confirmed cases will no longer increase rapidly, and additional hospital beds will be secured, so that we will see the effects of special quarantine measures during the year-end and New Year holidays.
Reporter Jeong Da-eun reports.
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The day before yesterday (26th), 970 new corona19 confirmed patients were added and fell below 1,000 again in three days.
The average daily number of confirmed cases in Korea for the past week was 999, which in fact met the three-stage upgrade criteria, but the government decided to extend the current distancing measures to January 3, next year by 6 days.
The government evaluated that efforts to block COVID-19, such as social distancing, and the speed of spread of the epidemic remain in balance.
[권덕철/보건복지부 장관 : 현재 환자 발생 수준에 대해선 방역과 의료 대응 역량을 계속 확충해 대응하고 있고 한계 상황으로 보기 어렵습니다.]
First of all, the infection reproduction index in the metropolitan area fell from 1.27 last week to 1.07.
After confirmation, the number of patients waiting at home decreased from more than 500 at one time to 96, and it was a positive sign that up to 164 critically ill beds were secured.
Also, from the 19th to the 20th, the number of mobile phone movements in the metropolitan area recorded the lowest level at about 24.44 million, and he decided to observe the effects of special quarantine measures.
It also seems to have taken into account the economic damage to be incurred in the case of a third-level upgrade.
[양 모 씨/음식점 운영 : 인건비도 문제가 많이 발생하고… 직원들 5명 인건비가 얼만데 100만 원 지원해서 될 턱이 있느냐고요. 턱도 없잖아요.]
If only drinks or desserts are ordered at fast food restaurants, only packaging and delivery are allowed, and quarantine measures are strengthened, such as prohibiting seating in unmanned cafes and banning hold’em pub operations nationwide.