The government is set to hold an emergency meeting of Cabinet ministers Sunday to discuss measures to prevent the spread of the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) following the outbreak of the country's first MERS case in three years.

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon will preside over Sunday's meeting set for 2 p.m., which will  include the health minister, the interior minister, the chief of the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC), as well as hospital officials and private experts.

The participants will check quarantine measures taken for the infected patient and people who have come in close contact with the patient, as well as response measures for each related state agency.

Health authorities said Saturday that a 61-year-old man was confirmed to be infected with the lethal virus after returning from a business trip to Kuwait via the United Arab Emirates. It marked the first MERS case reported in South Korea since 2015.