SEOUL, Nov 30 (NNN-YONHAP) – South Korean President, Moon Jae-in, yesterday, urged a rapid administration of booster shots against the COVID-19, as the eased anti-virus rules raised the number of severe cases and deaths.
Moon presided over a COVID-19 response meeting, saying, the country’s pandemic situation got serious amid the higher number of new infections, severe cases and deaths, as well as, fewer hospital beds for severe patients.
The government launched the “Living with COVID-19” rules this month, to alleviate anti-virus measures, following the country’s full vaccination rate topping 70 percent.
With the eased social-distancing guideline, confirmed cases surged for the past month. In the latest tally, South Korea reported 3,309 more cases of COVID-19 for the past 24 hours, lifting the total number of infections to 444,200.
The number of infected people who were in a serious condition surpassed 600, while 32 more deaths were confirmed, bringing the death toll to 3,580.
Moon said, it would be important to inoculate the unvaccinated, emphasising that, getting the third dose of COVID-19 vaccines would be as important as inoculating the unvaccinated.
“A third dose is not an additional shot but a basic shot. The way of thinking needs to be changed that, vaccination can be completed only after receiving the third jab,” said Moon.
Moon called for parents to let children aged between 12 and 17 get vaccinated, instructing officials to rapidly review the possible inoculation of minors aged between five and 11.
More than 90 percent of adults aged 18 or over are fully vaccinated, while the percentage of children aged between 12 and 17, who got inoculated, remained low, as parents refrained from it on fears about possible side effects.
Moon ordered officials to secure more hospital beds for severe patients, and move up the date of introducing pills for treatment, originally scheduled for Feb next year.– NNN-YONHAP
