As the quarantine authorities said, "The number of new weekly confirmed cases could increase to 350,000 at the end of this month due to the resurgence of COVID-19 this summer," there are growing calls for caution against COVID-19 infection, especially among the elderly, children and adolescents. Experts said, "If you wear a mask well over the next two weeks, which is expected to peak COVID-19, you can prevent COVID-19 to a large extent."

The main culprit of the resurgence is the Omicron KP.3 variant, which is currently prevalent in many countries around the world. The share of the KP.3 variant in Korea stood at 45.5 percent as of last month, up 33.4 percentage points from 12.1 percent in June. The KP.3 variant is characterized by strong transmission power. Although it is a sub-type of the JN.1 variant, which was popular in the first half of this year, a study found that the infection speed is about 22 percent faster than the JN.1 variant due to its stronger immune avoidance ability. However, the quarantine authorities said that the severity rate and mortality rate do not seem to be much different from other previous variants such as the JN.1 variant. They say the fatality rate is not as high as 0.05 to 0.1 percent. The quarantine authorities said that more than 95 percent of patients who recently visited the emergency room due to COVID-19 are patients with severe symptoms.
Detailed symptoms are also not much different from the existing COVID-19. Although it varies slightly from patient to patient, recently infected people also complain of coughing, sore throat, and runny nose. "Cough and sore throat are severe, but there are not a few patients who do not have a fever," said Kim Woo-joo, a professor of infectious diseases at Korea University Guro Hospital. "There are few symptoms of loss of taste and smell, which were major symptoms of COVID-19 in the past, and some patients suffer from neuralgia or conjunctivitis." As it is not easy to distinguish from body aches of a cold, if symptoms such as high fever, cough, or runny nose continue even after taking cold medicine, you should suspect COVID-19. Experts point out that the elderly or those with underlying diseases should prepare for the possibility that their condition will deteriorate rapidly due to pneumonia.

Ji Young-mi, head of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said at a briefing on the day, "If the people follow the prevention rules well, the scale of the outbreak (up to 350,000 confirmed cases per week) could be lower than expected."

Wearing a mask is not mandatory as in the past. However, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that workers, as well as guardians and visitors, wear masks in medical institutions such as hospitals, nursing facilities, and facilities for the disabled. In addition, high-risk groups such as those aged 60 or older and those with low immunity should wear masks indoors in closed rooms such as restaurants, hair salons, and senior citizens, and avoid participating in large-scale indoor events. Wearing a mask even if you are not in a high-risk group can help prevent COVID-19. It is recommended to refrain from going out when confirmed to COVID-19 and to go out after 24 hours have passed since major symptoms such as fever have improved.

The problem is the company and the school. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Ministry of Education said, "If you have severe fever or respiratory symptoms, you are advised to rest at home." The plan calls for the company to provide sick leave to employees so that they can rest when they are sick, and for the period when students go to school the day after the symptoms disappear, they will be admitted as attendance if they submit a doctor's note. However, this is only a recommendation, not a mandatory one. As each company has different vacation rules and sick leave is often not applied due to COVID-19, there are many cases where people use their personal annual leave or go to work without informing them of the infection.