South Korea said Monday it is testing 809 people in quarantine for the novel coronavirus, with the number of confirmed cases unchanged at 27.

On Sunday, the country reported three new cases of the new strain of virus, according to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The number of people being checked for the virus is down from 888 the day before, the KCDC said.

Of the confirmed cases, 24 patients were receiving treatment at local hospitals as of early Monday with three virus-infected patient discharged from hospitals.

The KCDC said the three new cases include a 51-year-old South Korean man and a 37-year-old Chinese woman, who returned here after staying in China's Guangdong province from November to Jan. 31.

Another South Korean woman, aged 73, is a family member of the couple.

Since Friday, the country's health authorities have expanded the scope of people subject to the test for the contagious virus and have allowed more medical centers to conduct the tests for potential cases.

South Korea is maintaining a high level of vigilance to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, but the authorities said the current alert level, the third highest, will be maintained. (Yonhap)