The government plans to announce response measures for the expected spread of the highly transmissible omicron variant as early as this week.

Health Minister Kwon Deok-cheol made the announcement Monday in his opening remarks for a COVID-19 response meeting in Seoul, noting that the variant is estimated to be responsible for more than 95 percent of new infections in the United States and Britain. 

Omicron currently makes up around ten percent of cases in South Korea, but some experts are predicting the highly transmissible variant will become a dominant strain in a couple of months. 

According to health authorities, the figure, which marked three-point-seven percent in the fourth week of December, steadily rose to eight-point-eight percent by the fifth week of the same month and 12-point-five percent in the first week of January.
 
The government plans to hold a meeting of a government-civilian experts' panel on Wednesday and collect opinions from various groups before announcing the measures. 

The health minister said that the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday is expected to mark a watershed in the spread of the virus as many people travel to their hometowns or go on trips.