South Korea will drop its mask mandate for most indoor venues, and Japan is considering changes to its recommendations, as some of the last Asian countries to require coverings pivots to living with Covid.
(Bloomberg) — South Korea will drop its mask mandate for most indoor venues, and Japan is considering changes to its recommendations, as some of the last Asian countries to require coverings pivots to living with Covid.
Korea’s mandate will end on Jan. 30, though the country still recommends people wear masks indoors, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said in a statement. A number of places will still require masks including care homes and hospitals, as well as public transport, it said. Korea’s mask mandate had been in place since November 2020.
Authorities have determined the current Covid wave has peaked, based on the country’s death rate and the number of critical patients. Nearly 98.6% of Koreans are estimated to have virus antibodies, the agency said, and measures targeting visitors from China mean there’ll be limited impact from that nation’s current surge in infections.
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Elsewhere, Japan announced that a health ministry panel will hold discussions about downgrading the disease classification of Covid on Jan. 23. Health Minister Katsunobu Kato said Friday that officials will consider recommending masks for a smaller list of venues.
While Japan doesn’t have a mandate, many people in the country wear masks and the current recommendation is for people to wear them indoors, including on public transport.
More countries are rolling back pandemic policies as the world shifts to treating Covid as endemic. Asia has remained a notable holdout for mask policies though, with Hong Kong officials this week saying a rule that requires coverings both indoors and outdoors will likely last through winter.
South Korea has been widely viewed as a global Covid success for avoiding lockdowns and widespread deaths, and has a highly vaccinated population. The country had previously ended its outdoor mask mandate in September 2022, though had remained wary about indoor activities due to a virus resurgence during winter. The number of daily Covid cases has dropped below 30,000 from more than 150,000 in August, with the death rate per 100,000 people at around 0.1.
–With assistance from Kanoko Matsuyama.
(Updates to add details from Japan throughout.)
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