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A phone used for scanning QR codes connected with vaccine passes is seen here shut off at a restaurant in Seoul’s Jongno District on March 1, the first day that the vaccine pass system was halted in Korea. (Yonhap News)

On the first day since Korea halted the use of vaccine passes on March 1, nearly half of all local COVID-19 deaths occurred in unvaccinated individuals. Of the six individuals who died who were under the age of 40, none had gotten the jab.

According to figures shared by the Central Disease Control Headquarters on March 1, new confirmed COVID-19 cases stood at 138,993 as of the end of Monday — 633 fewer than the previous day’s tally of 139,626.

New confirmed deaths stood at 112, down two from the previous day when Korea recorded 114 deaths — the highest number since the outbreak of the pandemic. The figures for COVID-19 related deaths have remained around the 110 mark recently.

Broken down by age group, 69 of those who died were in their 80s, 24 were in their 70s, eight were in their 60s, five were in their 50s, five were in their 40s, and one was in their 30s. Of the total deaths, 52 occurred in individuals not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Only 4.7% of the population over the age of 12 are not vaccinated, but the unvaccinated accounted for nearly half of all deaths resulting from the virus. All six deaths under the age of 40 were confirmed to be in unvaccinated individuals.

“Of the 1,272 deaths of people over age 12 over the past 8 weeks, 765 were not vaccinated, accounting for 60.2% of deaths, meaning dangers continue to exist,” an official with the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters said during a Monday briefing.

“It’s important that especially those unvaccinated above the age of 60 protect themselves from infection by getting the jab, or by making efforts to not contract [COVID-19],” the official said.

By Kwon Ji-dam, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]