Seoul, Jul 13 (IANS): South Korea's Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said on Wednesday that the government will expand eligibility for the fourth Covid-19 vaccine shot to people aged 50 years and older as well as people aged 18 years and older who have underlying health conditions.

The move comes as the nation is facing another wave of virus resurgence, driven by the fast spread of the highly contagious mutation of the Omicron strains, BA.5, which is known to be more contagious and better able to escape immunity compared with earlier versions.

"With the spread of BA.5 mutations, the resurgence is starting faster than originally expected," he told a virus response meeting.

Currently, people aged 60 years and older and people who have an immune disorder are eligible for fourth Covid-19 vaccine shots, Yonhap news agency reported.

Han added that the government will maintain a seven-day quarantine for people who are infected with the virus.

Citing experts, the Prime Minister said daily infections are expected to top 200,000 between mid-August and September-end.