South Korea’s new COVID-19 cases remained in the 20,000s for a second day Wednesday, down almost 7,400 from a week earlier.
Korea added 23,956 new infections, including 21 from overseas, raising the total to 18,018,923, according to the KDCA.
The daily count plummeted to a 16-week low for a Wednesday and was down 23.5% from the week before.
The fast spread of the omicron type pushed South Korea’s daily caseload to over 621,000 on March 17.
The country now has 24,029 COVID-19 deaths. 0.13 percent died and 237 critically ill patients.
South Korea began allowing international passengers to submit quick antigen test results and PCR test findings this week.
South Korea eased most of the COVID-19 rules last month, except for the seven-day self-isolation. The mandate expires June 20.
Seoul had 3,586 locally transmitted cases, while Gyeonggi reported 5,258. Incheon, 40 km west of Seoul, has 998 patients.
As of Tuesday midnight, 44.57 million people (86.9%) had finished the full two-dose immunizations, and 33.27 million (64.8%) had received their first booster doses. The KDCA reported 3.89 million second booster doses.