All SKorean students face swine flu check

SKOREA: All South Korean elementary and secondary schoolchildren will have their temperature checked daily to combat the spread of swine flu, officials said Thursday.

The education ministry said all schools were instructed to strengthen their fight against the A(H1N1) virus when the month-long summer break ends this week.

“Teachers with digital thermometers will check the body temperature of all students at the school gates every morning,” a spokesman told AFP.

Schools were also told to sterilise classrooms daily and refrain from organising group activities.

South Korea reported more than 3,300 cases of swine flu, including 926 students. Two patients died this month. The ministry said 46 schools have closed or delayed opening for the autumn term.

South Korea has enough Tamiflu to treat 5.3 million people, about 10 percent of the population. It will secure the treatment for more than 10 million by the end of the year.

The government will push to prioritise elementary and secondary school students when a vaccine becomes available later this year.

Vaccines against swine flu are not yet available on the market as they are still undergoing clinical trials. Seoul, Thursday, AFP