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Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol said Thursday that herd immunity against COVID-19 is expected to be achieved in Korea by November with a public vaccination program set to begin next month.
"As the first round of inoculation will be completed in September, we expect herd immunity to be formed by November, when 70 percent of the population will have received the vaccine," Kwon said during a virtual New Year press conference, his first press "meeting" following his inauguration in December.
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| Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol speaks during a virtual New Year press conference, Thursday. / Courtesy of Ministry of Health and Welfare |
He added that vaccination will not totally eradicate the spread of the coronavirus, as seen in the cases of seasonal flu and the common cold. "The ultimate goal of the vaccine plan is to minimize infections before next winter and prevent high-risk patients from deteriorating into critically ill patients," Kwon said.
The minister vowed to draw up sufficient communication channels to inform the public of detailed inoculation plans before vaccinations start, in order to ease public concerns over their safety and effectiveness.
When asked about the ministry's plans to resolve the issue of fairness raised by small business owners over extended bans on public gatherings and suspensions of business operations, Kwon said the focus will be on implementing more flexible social distancing rules by taking into account the impact on people's daily lives.
The minister added that the government is currently looking into compensation measures suffered by small business owners due to the suspension of operations.
"Such a compensation plan, first introduced during the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak in 2015, was applied only to medical institutions at the time. We will discuss expanding it to other sectors," he said.
Kwon was appointed as the minister of health and welfare Dec. 24, after heading the Korea Health Industry Development Institute. He had previously served as the deputy minister of the health ministry from 2017 to 2019.
