South Korea yesterday reported that at least 116 people initially cleared of COVID-19 had tested positive again, although officials suggested they would soon look at easing strict recommendations aimed at preventing new outbreaks.
South Korea yesterday reported only 25 new cases overall, but the rise in “reactivated” patients has raised concerns as the nation seeks to stamp out infections.
Officials are still investigating the cause of the apparent relapses. Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Director Jeong Eun-kyeong has said the virus might have been reactivated rather than the patients being reinfected.
Other experts said faulty tests might be playing a role, or remnants of the virus might still be in patients’ systems, but not be infectious or of danger to the host or others.
The 116 cases is more than double the 51 such cases South Korea reported a week earlier.
Government leaders called on South Koreans to continue to follow guidelines and restrictions on social gatherings, but hinted that such measures could soon be eased.
South Korea has called on residents to follow strict social distancing until at least Sunday, but as cases have dropped and the weather has improved, a growing number of people have been flouting the guidelines.
At a meeting on disaster management, South Korean Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said the government would soon be looking to loosen the guidelines, which call for people to stay at home, avoid social gatherings of any type, and only go out for essential reasons.
“Later this week, we plan to review our intensive social distancing campaign that we have carried out so far and discuss whether we will switch to routine safety measures” he said.
Some local governments have imposed stricter measures, including closing bars and nightclubs, banning large demonstrations, and limiting church services.
Chung cautioned that even when the restrictions are eased, the country would not return to life as before the outbreak.
“We need a very cautious approach because any premature easing of social distancing could bring irreversible consequences, and have to ponder deeply about when and how we switch to the new system,” he said.
In related news, South Korea plans to send kits designed to run up to 600,000 coronavirus tests to the US today after an appeal from US President Donald Trump, a Seoul official said.
Trump made the request in a telephone call with South Korean President Moon Jae-in on March 25, as the US was grappling with fast-growing outbreaks in many states.
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