(LEAD) S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases jump to over 73,000 as subvariant spreads

▲ People wait to take coronavirus tests at a makeshift testing facility in Songpa, eastern Seoul, amid the spread of an omicron subvariant on July 19, 2022. (Yonhap)

(LEAD) coronavirus-additional cases

(LEAD) S. Korea's new COVID-19 cases jump to over 73,000 as subvariant spreads

(ATTN: UPDATES with details in paras 6-11; ADDS photo)

SEOUL, July 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new coronavirus cases jumped to over 73,000 Tuesday as a highly contagious omicron subvariant is spreading fast amid eased virus curbs.

The country reported 73,582 new COVID-19 infections, including 351 from overseas, bringing the total caseload to 18,861,593, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said.

Tuesday's figure more than doubled from 26,299 cases a day earlier. The daily caseload stood at 40,342 on Sunday and 41,310 on Saturday.

The country has seen a marked increase in infections from end-June as the omicron subvariant BA.5 spreads during the summer holidays. The daily count hit over 10,000 on June 29 for the first time in about three weeks before jumping to over 20,000 on July 9 and then above 40,000 on Wednesday.

The KDCA reported 12 deaths from the virus Tuesday, putting the death toll at 24,765. The fatality rate stood at 0.13 percent.

The number of critically ill patients was 91, up from the previous day's 81.

Health authorities said the country has entered a new virus wave, ending a downward trend from the peak of more than 620,000 in mid-March, and that the daily infections could surge to over 200,000 next month.

To keep the virus from spreading further, the government recommended fourth COVID-19 vaccine shots for people aged 50 and older as well as people aged 18 and older who have underlying health conditions, starting Monday.

Previously, people aged 60 and older and people who have an immune disorder were eligible for the fourth vaccine dose.

The move comes as the nation is facing another resurgence of the virus, driven by the omicron strain BA.5, which is known to be more contagious and better able to escape immunity compared with earlier versions.

By the end of July, the government plans to expand the number of "one-stop" COVID-19 treatment centers, where people can take virus tests, get in-person medical care services and receive antiviral drugs, to 10,000 from the current 6,338.

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