◀ anchor ▶
If Omicron becomes the dominant force this weekend, the number of confirmed cases is expected to surge. The fatality rate is low, but we cannot be relieved.
The government emphasized vaccination, saying that the third dose is also effective for Omicron.
This is reporter Lee Jae-min.
◀ Report ▶
In Korea, the fatality rate of delta mutation is 1.8%, but Omicron is relatively low at 0.14%.
However, if the number of confirmed cases increases, the number of severe cases will also increase in proportion.
In particular, it is necessary to prepare for the possibility that the medical system will be paralyzed due to the increase in the number of patients with severe cases and deaths within two weeks to one month after the surge in the number of confirmed cases.
In Korea, 11.74 million people who have not received the third dose are classified as vulnerable to Omicron infection.
Most of them are between the ages of 18 and 59 and have received their third dose this month, but are not vaccinated.
For this reason, the rate of tertiary vaccination, which rapidly increased due to intensive vaccination for those in their 60s last month, slowed in January.
The government emphasized that Omicron can only be prevented by completing the third dose.
Although there is a difference depending on the type of vaccine received in the 1st or 2nd dose, if the 3rd dose is given with the Pfizer vaccine, the neutralizing antibody that can neutralize Omicron increases up to 29 times, and the effect of severe prevention is certain.
[홍정익/코로나19 예방접종대응추진단 예방접종관리팀장]
“The goal of the third vaccination is to prevent serious illness and death, and it seems that the effect of the third vaccination can last for a long time…”
Meanwhile, as the vaccination rate of Koreans increases, the number of people with antibodies has also increased significantly.
As a result of a survey of about 1,400 people for four months from July last year, the antibody retention rate was 67%, a significant increase from the 0.52% reported in the metropolitan area residents survey in February.
This is Jaemin Lee from MBC News.
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