Gyeonggi Province: "Visitors to Itaewon and Nonhyeon-dong Area Must Get Rapid Diagnostic Tests by the 31st"

[Suwon Ilbo=Park No-hun Reporter] With the government extending the period for health insurance coverage and diagnostic test fee support for COVID-19 related to the Itaewon club cluster outbreak from the 20th to the 31st, Gyeonggi Province stated that it is making efforts to protect the human rights of residents that may be infringed during quarantine activities, and reiterated the need for those who fall under diagnostic test targets to get tested quickly.

Lim Seung-kwan, Co-Chair of Gyeonggi Province's COVID-19 Emergency Countermeasures Task Force (Director of Anseong Hospital, Gyeonggi Province Medical Center), said in a regular briefing on the 20th, "It is true that it is difficult to completely control personal information exposure and privacy invasion in the epidemiological investigation and information disclosure process, but Gyeonggi Province will communicate with civil society and fill in the gaps." He added, "For residents in Gyeonggi Province who have recently visited the Itaewon and Nonhyeon-dong areas in Seoul but have not yet been tested, regardless of symptoms, please get a rapid diagnostic test at your local public health center."

In connection with this, the province held a meeting with officials from the COVID-19 Sexual Minorities Emergency Response Task Force and the Gyeonggi Province Human Rights Commission on the 15th. At the meeting, discussions took place regarding measures to enable sexual minorities to safely and quickly undergo voluntary testing, problems that may arise during the testing and epidemiological investigation process and solutions, and psychological counseling support measures in situations where mental health may be threatened by outing and other issues.

As of 0:00 on the 20th, there are a total of 192 confirmed cases related to Itaewon clubs nationwide. Of these, 41 confirmed cases in the province increased by 7 from the previous day, with 19 cases directly related to Itaewon clubs and 22 cases of community transmission including family members and coworkers who had contact with confirmed patients. By occupation, office workers account for 20 cases (49%), making up half of the cases, and by age group, those in their 20s and 30s account for 34 cases (83%), the highest number.
Out of 17,430 people related to Itaewon clubs and 1,623 people related to community transmission, a total of 19,053 people underwent diagnostic testing, with 18,959 testing negative and 41 testing positive. The remaining 53 are undergoing testing.

Director Lim explained that "since the implementation of the free testing administrative order for visitors to Itaewon and Nonhyeon-dong on the 10th, the number of voluntary test takers has shown a trend of significant increase followed by decrease."

Among the new confirmed cases reported on that day, a radiologist working at Yongin Gangnam Hospital, a resident of Anyang, developed symptoms after working on the morning of the 18th and was confirmed positive after screening at the hospital where he works. According to epidemiological investigation, this confirmed case had contact with a confirmed patient in Gunpo who visited the Itaewon club on the 5th, and is presumed to have been infected while drinking with 5 friends and acquaintances at a bar in Anyang on the 14th night. A total of 6 people, including confirmed cases in Yongin and Gunpo, were confirmed positive.
The confirmed case worked at Gangnam Hospital on the 16th, the day before the confirmation, and was off on the 17th. After the confirmed case was reported, Gangnam Hospital closed its emergency room, prohibited admissions, discharges and outpatient visits, and conducted disinfection, resuming operations on the 20th.
The province conducted epidemiological investigations into visitors to Gangnam Hospital starting from the 16th, two days before symptom onset, identified 133 in-hospital contacts, and classified them for self-quarantine. The 133 contacts consist of 17 hospital staff members, 14 inpatients, and 102 outpatient patients. Of these, 34 close contacts have completed specimen collection and are undergoing testing, with 29 currently testing negative and 5 undergoing testing, and in-depth epidemiological investigations are ongoing.

Meanwhile, the province is tracking and managing users of facilities visited by confirmed cases related to clubs in the province. ▲May 10: Saenggogijejakso Beomgye branch and Gangnam Oppa Ne in Dong-gu, Anyang ▲May 12: The Jjap, New York Night Market Anyang 1st Avenue Branch, and Yosuljan in Man-gu, Anyang ▲May 13: Poseason PC Bang in Gunpo ▲May 14: Lululala Coin Karaoke and Meokgoboja Yang Skewers in Man-gu, Anyang, and Lotteria Anyang Branch ▲May 16: Game Anus PC Bang in Dong-gu, Anyang ▲May 14, 15, 17: Zakoo and others in Man-gu, Anyang. The province requested that residents of Gyeonggi Province who visited these locations during the confirmed case's visit time on the respective dates undergo testing at the nearest public health center, regardless of symptoms.

Meanwhile, as of 0:00 on the 20th, the number of confirmed cases in Gyeonggi Province was 734, an increase of 9 from 0:00 the previous day (10,110 nationwide). Of the confirmed cases in Gyeonggi Province, 615 have been discharged, and 103 are currently in isolation at hospitals and life treatment centers. As of 0:00 on the 20th, through cooperation with 3 state-designated hospitalization treatment hospitals, 5 Gyeonggi Province public medical institutions, and 8 private general hospitals in the province, a total of 16 hospitals are securing 528 treatment beds, and the currently used beds account for 18.6%, or 98 beds.