The Ministry of SME and Startups said Monday that it would change regulations to prevent businesses from avoiding on-site investigations because they are in litigation.Last December, the ministry received a report that Daewoong Pharmaceutical had infringed on the technology of botulinum toxin developed by Meditox, a small and midsize enterprise, and attempted to conduct a field investigation o
The global spread of Covid-19 has slowed down and hindered clinical trials throughout the world, Medidata Solutions said Monday based on its recent analysis. According to the report, the Covid-19 pandemic and various “lockdown” measures in place around the world are adversely affecting institutions’ ability to conduct existing trials and initiate new studies.“The impact of Covid-19 on clin
“It will be a powerless unit with the essential tasks taken away.” This is how an infectious disease expert described the government’s plan to upgrade the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) to an independent administrative agency. The government said the plan aimed to enhance KCDC’s expertise and autonomy to better fight infectious diseases after the Covid-19 pandemic.
Korea’s new virus cases fell below 40 on Sunday from above 50 in the two previous days, but officials called for continued social distancing to stem further cluster infections, mainly in Seoul and its vicinity.The nation reported 38 new Covid-19 cases, including 33 confirmed in the Seoul metro region, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Monday. There were no additional fa
Korea’s fight against Covid-19 increasingly looks like a whack-a-mole game, as new cluster infections pop up in unexpected places as soon as health officials managed to contain existing hot spots.The nation reported 39 new virus cases, including 34 local infections, on Friday, similar to a day earlier, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Following entertainmen
Five months have passed since the nation started a war against the new coronavirus outbreak.The battle has already become prolonged, but the healthcare system is not quite following up well. Unless the medical system gets overhauled, damages not only on Covid-19 patients but those with other diseases will be detrimental, experts warned.Above all, the government should draw up a policy to m
Korea’s new Covid-19 cases have remained between 30 and 40 over the past few days, as small, sporadic infections linked to religious gatherings continued in Seoul and its vicinity. The number of newly confirmed cases is going up and down each day, depending on the circumstances. Still, the public health authorities have failed to seize the spread. The health officials could not let their guar
The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Wednesday that 1.05 trillion won ($867 million) has been allocated to help develop Covid-19 treatments and other similar efforts, as part of the government’s third supplementary budget.The spending includes 26.5 billion won for financing national programs to give flu vaccines to teenagers aged 14 to 18 free of charge to prepare for the second wave of Cov
The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety said it has granted emergency approval for Gilead Sciences’ remdesivir to be used as Covid-19 treatment.The regulator said it decided so to allow the import of the investigational Covid-19 drug, and that the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) would discuss the import of the medicine with related government agencies and Gilead Sciences K
A locally developed antibody treatment candidate to fight Covid-19 showed a therapeutic effect in a test in weasels, the public health authorities said. The experimental drug is expected to be commercialized in the first half of 2021, they said.The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said the government was working with private companies to develop an antibody treatment and
Korea’s new Covid-19 cases rebounded on Wednesday, as cluster infections linked to religious gatherings in the Seoul metro region showed few signs of decline amid the broader school reopening.The nation reported an additional 49 coronavirus cases Wednesday, and 48 of them occurred in the greater Seoul area, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. The cumulative caseload clim
“As the head of Korea Orphan and Essential Drug Center putting patients first, I will put good ideas about the organization, legislation, and budget into practice during my tenure.”Kim Na-kyung, who recently took office as the 12th CEO of KOEDC, made this and other remarks at a meeting with reporters in Seoul, Tuesday.he first introduced the role of the orphan drug center.“The cent
Infections originating from smaller churches in the Seoul metro region are resurging to pose another obstacle on health officials’ quarantine efforts and cast dark clouds on the third-phase school reopening from Wednesday.Korea reported 38 new Covid-19 cases on Tuesday, including 36 local infections, bringing the total to 11,541, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. All o
The spread of new virus cases somewhat slowed down over the weekend, but quarantine officials continued their struggle against sporadic cluster infections linked to clubs, logistics centers, cramming schools, nursing homes, and churches.Korea reported 35 new Covid-19 patients on Monday, and 30 of them were local infections, the Kore Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said.The cumul
The public health authorities are going all out to keep the recent spike of new Covid-19 cases in Seoul and its vicinity from developing into another series of national outbreaks.The new virus cases in the capital area – Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi Province -- remained around 10 a day throughout last week. Since the cluster infections break out at a logistics center west of Seoul on Monday, ho
The medical community is considering conducting active monitoring of unlicensed practices to root out these illegal activities committed within medical institutions.Specific targets of surveillance include ghost surgery by unqualified persons, prescription through identity delegation at training hospitals, and the operation of medical facilities by people other than licensed physicians by hiri
Korea’s new Covid-19 cases surged to the highest level in nearly two months on Wednesday as cluster inflections shifted from entertainment places to logistics centers, forcing public health authorities to consider resuming social distancing system.The nation reported 79 newly infected patients as of midnight Wednesday, and 69 of them were local infections linked to the logistics center of Coup
The Korean Pharmaceutical Association said Wednesday that some of Sanofi Aventis' Rodogyl 125mg products, a susceptible anaerobic bacteria infection treatment, had defects in their press through pack (PTP) packaging, calling for caution in distributing them.The association’s move followed its request in December last year for Sanofi’s correctional measure, after discovering that some batch
Korea’s new Covid-19 cases rebounded to 40 on Wednesday, the highest in 49 days, as health officials kept wrestling with persistent club-linked infections, and a large warehouse southwest of Seoul emerged as a new cluster. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 37 local infections and three arrivals from overseas, pushing up the total to 11,265. As of midnight Tuesday,
The Korean Pharmaceutical Association (KPA), a nonprofit organization of pharmacists, opposed the government's push for introducing telemedicine, on Tuesday. The group instead called for building a robust and practical basis to prevent and control infectious diseases.The pharmacists pointed out that the government is attempting to introduce a telemedicine system with the name of "untact care"