Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum has apologized to the public over the surge in the nation’s daily COVID-19 cases to over 90-thousand.

Presiding over a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Wednesday, Kim said he is apologetic to the public over a spike in cases despite their continued cooperation.

Health authorities reported 90-thousand-443 cases compiled in the past 24 hours, up by over 30-thousand from a previous record high of 57-thousand-175 registered just a day earlier.

The prime minister, however, noted a stable maintenance of critical cases citing the government’s proactive responses to the omicron, such as booster shot administrations and the introduction of COVID-19 pills. The situations regarding ICU occupancy for COVID-19 patients and home-treatment systems are also assessed to be stable, he said.

Regarding the forthcoming announcement of adjustments to the social distancing rules, Kim said both the public fatigue from the stringent distancing and the rapid spread of the omicron variant will be taken into account before making a decision.

He said the decision will be finalized in a way that minimizes economic and social fallout from the omicron spread, adding it will be made during a headquarters meeting on Friday.