South Korea To Drop Indoor Mask Rule

As the number of Covid-19 cases declines, authorities in South Korea announced on Friday that one of the country's last major pandemic restrictions will be lifted and masks will no longer be required in most indoor areas.

Facemasks will no longer be required to be worn indoors, with the exception of on public transportation and in medical facilities, beginning on January 30.

One of South Korea's last pandemic-era restrictions is the mask mandate, which has been in place since October 2020. Other rules like business curfews and social distance have long been dropped.

People who are officially diagnosed with Covid are still required to isolate themselves for seven days in this country.

The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's Jee Young-mee stated, "The adjustments on the mandatory indoor mask mandate will be implemented from Monday, January 30th, after the Lunar New Year holiday."

During a government Covid response meeting, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo stated that the plan was to change the indoor mask mandate from "required to recommended."

He stated that the decision had been made in light of the strong medical response capabilities of the nation, a decrease in the number of coronavirus-related serious cases and deaths, and a trend toward fewer new infections.

He said, "External risk factors were also judged to be sufficiently manageable," appearing to be referring to Seoul's response to China's recent surge in cases.

Earlier this month, Seoul implemented a number of new rules for visitors from China, including requirements for testing and restrictions on visas.

China stopped issuing short-term visas to South Koreans last week in apparent retaliation for Chinese travelers' restrictions regarding outbreak concerns.

According to official data, nearly 30 million South Koreans have been infected with Covid and more than 33,000 have died.