S.Korea to cut COVID-19 quarantine from seven days to five in May

South Korea’s mandatory quarantine for confirmed COVID-19 patients from May will be cut from seven days to five, as the country is expected to completely lift isolation of such cases and indoor mask wearing by July.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Wednesday released a roadmap on modification of the COVID-19 crisis level under a three-stage quarantine system to promote a return to daily life.

Quarantine authorities suggested lowering the crisis level a notch from “severe” to “warning” in the first stage and the coronavirus' infectious disease rating from Level 2 to 4 in the second. COVID-19 is thus designated a three-stage endemic like the flu.

“Along with lowering the crisis level, the mandatory quarantine for confirmed cases will also be shortened from seven days to five,” Prime Minister Han Duck-soo told a meeting of the headquarters that day.

Phase 1 coincides with the lifting of the World Health Organization’s Public Health Emergency of International Concern. The watchdog will hold a related meeting late next month or in early May, and after it lifts the state of emergency, Seoul will launch Phase 1.

In July, the country is expected to completely lift mandatory quarantine for confirmed patients and the indoor mask-wearing rule at places like hospitals.

“We must look at the situation two or three months after implementing the first phase, so if this stage is adjusted in early May, the second phase is expected around July,” said Jee Young-mee, commissioner of the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.

The country expects the end of the pandemic by early next year, with a headquarters official saying, “We can enter Phase 3 next year.”

Write to Jung-Eun Kim at likesmile@hankyung.com