국내 신규 확진자 76명 ... 오늘부터 수도권 요양•정신병원 직원 등 16만 명 코로나19 전수조사<br /><br />South Korea reported fewer than a hundred new COVID-19 cases for the fourth straight day on Monday.<br />But, health authorities remain concerned about cluster infections at long-term care hospitals, mainly in Seoul and the surrounding area.<br />Our Min Suk-hyen reports.<br />South Korea reported 76 new COVID-19 cases on Monday… marking the fourth straight day with less than a hundred infections.<br />Of them, 50 were locally transmitted and 26 were from overseas.<br />This brings the total number of coronavirus cases nationwide to over 25-thousand-200.<br />No additional deaths were reported, keeping the death toll at 444.<br />Since last week, several cluster infections have emerged at long-term care hospitals, mainly in the greater Seoul area.<br />According to health authorities, as of Sunday, a total of 51 people contracted the virus at a rehabilitation hospital in Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do Province.<br />A long-term care hospital in Busan also saw a spike in cases with 73 people testing positive.<br />In response, to contain the spread of the virus, the government has started conducting tests on some 160-thousand people linked to such hospitals and facilities in the greater Seoul area.<br />"Although the number of cluster infections appears to be falling, cases continue to be reported at long-term care and rehabilitation hospitals.....From this week, the government will conduct tests on those high-risk facilities."<br />The country lowered its social distancing guidelines to the lowest level in its three-tier system last Monday.<br />The government, however, explains it's not because the risks of COVID-19 have decreased, rather it's a measure taken to get people's lives back to normal, without hampering the country's virus prevention efforts.<br />Min Suk-hyen, Arirang News.<br />
