The Updates of COVID-19 in Republic of Korea

11 July, 2020

□ As of 0:00, 11 July 2020, the total number of confirmed cases is 13,373 (including 1,806 imported cases), of which 12,144 cases have been discharged from isolation. There are 20 new local cases, 15 new imported cases, and 0 new deaths.

□ The current state* of major local clusters as of today (as of 12:00, 11 July) are as follows:

* The specific figures below may differ from the daily reported statistics (which are based on figures as of 0:00 today) or figures disclosed by local municipalities due to factors such as report timing and differences in the time period considered

○ Related to the Lotte Midopa Gwanghwamun building in Jongno-gu, Seoul City, 1 contact was additionally confirmed. In total, 7 cases have been confirmed.

○ Related to door-to-door sales group in the Seoul metropolitan area, 1 additional case was confirmed. 4 previously confirmed cases whose source of infection was uncertain turned out to be linked to this cluster. In total, 40* cases have been confirmed.

* Gyeonggi = 29; Incheon = 8, Seoul = 3

○ Related to the apartment complex in Uijeongbu-si, Gyeonggi Province, 1 additional case (acquaintance of fitness center case) was confirmed. In total, 30* cases have been confirmed.

* 9 residents of the apartment complex; 2 from the fitness center; 19 contacts outside of the fitness center

○ Related to Lord Glory Church in Anyang-si, Gyeonggi Province, 2 additional case were confirmed. In total, 26* cases have been confirmed.

* Seoul = 1; Gyeonggi = 25

○ Related to the The Joeun Clinic in Seo-gu, Daejeon City, 1 additional cases were confirmed. In total, 18 cases have been confirmed.

○ Related to a badminton club in Buk-gu, Gwangju City, 3 new cases were confirmed after index case was confirmed on 8 July. In total, there have been 4 cases. Epidemiological investigation to find out a link to the existing clusters is underway.

○ Related to the door-to-door sales group in Gwangju City, 6 additional cases were confirmed. The new cases are related to Hanwul Nursing Home (2), Gwangju Gosi Hagwon (2), Gwangneuksa Temple (1), and Happy View Hospital (1). In total, 127 cases have been confirmed.

    * Subject to change based on findings from epidemiological investigation

□ The (presumed) location of infection acquisition of the 15 new imported cases are: America (5) and Asia excluding China (10) (Philippines=4; Kazakhstan=2; Uzbekistan=2; Pakistan=1, Afghanistan=1).

* Figures may change based on findings from ongoing local epidemiological investigation efforts

○ During 10 July, 135 ships entered 11 harbors (seaports) nationwide. On-board quarantine inspection was conducted for 33 ships.

□ The KCDC expressed gratitude for the 14 additional people who signed up to donate their plasma for the development of COVID-19 plasma therapy and encouraged more eligible people to participate. In total, 375 people have registered. Plasma collection has been completed for 171 of the donors as of today.

○ Plasma therapy requires a large amount of blood as it involves formulating a concentrated form of the antibodies and immunoglobulin from the blood of people who have recovered from COVID-19.

○ As plasma required for clinical trial is already secured, clinical trial will be started soon after producing plasma-derived medicine. Plasma collection for 500 donors in Daegu City and Gyeongbuk Province starts on 13 July, and Korean Red Cross provides their buses to support the process. The plasma collected in the future will be used in the production of plasma-derived medicine after the clinical trial is over.

○ People aged 18-64 who have been confirmed with COVID-19, fully recovered, discharged (released) from isolation (at least 14 days ago) are able to participate.

* Participating hospitals: Korea University Ansan Hospital, Keimyung University Dongsan Hospital, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu Fatima Hospital / For inquiries, dial 1522-6487

□ The Central Disease Control Headquarters decided to share clinical and epidemiological information of 5,500 confirmed cases with health care facilities(7) and schools(2) in order to establish evidence-based response measures. In order to protect personal information, the data will be anonymized, and the overall sharing system will be reviewed by Committee of Utilizing COVID-19 Case Information.

○ It is expected that sharing the information could contribute to analyze COVID-19 clinical features including severity studies, provide evidence for treatment and management of asymptomatic cases, and give policy recommendation on efficient resource allocation.

□ The Central Disease Control Headquarters also stated that Remdesivir, which had been imported as COVID-19 treatment, were given to 42 severe cases in 23 hospitals.

□ The Headquarters also asked the public to take extra precautions in regard to the recent clusters related to door-to-door sales.

○ Door-to-door sales increases transmission risk because of their work environments visited by multiple visitors in close proximity, coming into contact for a long duration of time. Therefore, middle-aged and senior citizens should not attend events related to door-to-door sales.

- Small group product information sessions held in households should be refrained as well as they also require conversations held close proximity for a long duration of time, which increases the likelihood of infection.

- In addition, if you show symptoms of COVID-19 after participating in an event or a meeting related to door-to-door sales, cancel all outdoor activities or meetings, and visit a screening center to get tested.

□ In light of the recent spreading of COVID-19 through religious small group meetings and religious events, the Headquarter urged religious communities to take particular caution during the upcoming weekend, including:

○ Avoid gatherings or switch to non-face-to-face methods;

○ In the case of an unavoidable on-site event, minimize the number of people attending on site, ensure 2 meter distancing and mask wearing at all times, use instrumental music instead of singing, and refrain from having small group meetings or dining together.

○ In additional, when talking on a mobile phone, the call should be taken outside or with mask worn.

[Figure 3: Daily new confirmed cases by chain of transmission]

TOTAL

Seoul City

Incheon City

Gyeonggi Province

Daejeon City

Gwangju City

[Table 5: Age distribution of severe cases]

[Figure 4: New cases (for last 2 weeks) by chain of transmission]