New flu cases down sharply last week: gov't

SEOUL, Jan. 28 (Yonhap) -- The number of new flu cases reported in South Korea
fell sharply last week as more than 10 million people been vaccinated to stem the
spread of the pandemic, the government said Thursday.

The Central Influenza Headquarters under the health ministry said a total of
3,565 people have been confirmed as having caught the Influenza A (H1N1) virus in
the seven day period, down from 5,463 in the second week of this month.
Seoul, which reported its first H1N1-related fatality in mid-August, started a
nationwide vaccination program in November that inoculated over 20 percent of the
48 million people living in the country.
Under the vaccination program, the government gave a top priority to medical
personnel, soldiers, school children, infants and pregnant women who were most
vulnerable to the flu that has spread all over the world.
The local influenza center said that because schools across the country will open
next month following a winter break, it will step up vaccinations of senior
citizens and people suffering from chronic illnesses in the first week of
February.
Reopening of schools can help spread the disease from person to person,
Health authorities, meanwhile, said despite the overall drop in flu cases, four
people died from complications caused by the virulent virus last week, bringing
the death toll total to 218 for the country.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)

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