South Korea expert defends use of rapid tests as omicron surges

SEOUL (AP):

South Korea’s top infectious disease expert defended the move to expand the use of rapid testing despite accuracy concerns, as the country broke its daily coronavirus record multiple times last week.

The 14,518 confirmed new cases Thursday were 1,500 more than Wednesday and about double the cases reported on Monday, illustrating a tidal wave of infections driven by the highly contagious omicron variant.

The surge, which could continue for weeks, has left health authorities scrambling to reshape the country’s pandemic response, such as treating a larger number of mild cases at home and shortening quarantine periods.

Officials are also pushing ahead with a more controversial plan to rewire the testing regime that had been centred around gold standard PCR tests and expand the use of rapid antigen kits that will be made available at public health offices, testing stations and pharmacies.

According to the new policy that will be enforced nationwide in February, PCR tests will now be mostly saved for people in their 60s and older or those with pre-existing conditions. Most people will be asked to try a rapid test kit first and request PCR only when those tests are positive.

Some doctors’ groups have opposed the plan, saying that rapid tests aren’t sensitive enough to reliably detect infections. They say officials should instead take steps to expand the capacities for PCR tests, which are more accurate but require huge numbers of professionals administrating nasal and throat swabs and high-tech machines analysing samples.

Omicron has become the dominant variant globally and more easily infects those who have been vaccinated or had COVID-19 previously. But vaccination and booster shots still provide strong protection from serious illness, hospitalisation and death.

More than 85 per cent of South Korea’s more than 51 million people have been fully vaccinated and more than half the population have received booster shots. Still, there are concerns that a sudden explosion in infections could overwhelm hospitals and cause disruption at workplaces and essential services by constantly placing huge numbers of people under quarantine.