Sharjah24 - Reuters: South Korea said on Thursday patients with mild coronavirus symptoms will have to treat themselves, aiming to free up medical resources for more serious cases, as new infections hit a fresh high because of the fast spreading Omicron variant.
South Korea has largely been a COVID-19 mitigation success story, thanks to aggressive testing and tracing, social distancing and mask wearing.
But as the highly infectious but less deadly Omicron variant began spreading, the government this month started to shift its strategy away from testing and tracing and towards self-monitoring, diagnosis and at-home treatment.
From Thursday, authorities will only provide care to COVID-19 patients aged 60 and older or with underlying conditions, while others monitor themselves and seek medical help from designated clinics if their conditions worsen.
Medical kits including an oxygen saturation measurement device, a thermometer and a fever remedy - previously available to all patients who treat themselves at home - would now be distributed only to priority groups.
Those with mild or no symptoms will now have to purchase such items at their own expense.
Officials have estimated around 13.5% of new cases would be classified as high risk groups.
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