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Sponsored How to reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses in Thailand?
Managing medical expenses in Thailand is important as healthcare costs continue to rise. The country’s healthcare system includes both public and private options, but even with the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) for citizens, many still face high out-of-pocket medical expenses....
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Thai principal pulls out gun at school assembly amid sexual abuse allegation
A principal at a school in Southern Thailand pulled out a gun at a morning flag assembly after a criminal complaint was filed with police claiming that he had a sexual relationship with a student. The principal at Thepha School in Songkhla, Sayan Chaleephol, was discussing the school’s budget at the assembly, but then changed the subject and started asking…
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Gambling advocate and net idol arrested for allegedly running online gambling operation
An internet idol once called the “Gambler King” by the Bangkok Post was arrested for allegedly running an online gambling operation. The 29 year old self-professed gambler, Apirak “Sia Po” Chat-anon, is known for advocating for the legalisation of gambling. The Thai government even asked him to be an advisor on a committee reviewing Thailand’s laws on gambling. Police from…
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52 people in Bangkok arrested for alleged involvement in illegal loan operation
Thai immigration police arrested 52 people who were allegedly involved in an illegal loan shark operation using a smartphone application called “Speedwallet” to provide loans with interest rates higher than the legal limit. Police had received complaints from several of the application’s customers. Speedwallet provided loans of 5,000 baht to 20,000 baht and collected interest rates of 12% to 15%…
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AstraZeneca vaccine to arrive this month, despite EU export restrictions – Public Health Ministry
While there’s no exact date on the arrival of Covid-19 vaccines, the Public Health Ministry is assuring the public that the first order of the AstraZeneca vaccine will arrive this month, despite the European Union’s restrictions on Covid-19 vaccine exports. The National Vaccine Institute is working on getting the first shipment this month, according to the ministry’s permanent secretary. Thailand…
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Most Thai provinces have been Covid-free for 7 days – CCSA
The government’s Covid-19 task force says 46 Thai provinces have had no new case of Covid-19 for 7 days. Taweesilp Visanuyothin from the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration says another 14 provinces have not recorded any infections at all in the latest outbreak. However, both the central province of Maha Sarakham, and the northern province of Tak, have recorded a…
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Foodpanda driver boats across river to deliver an order
A Foodpanda driver went above and beyond to deliver a meal to a customer. After picking up the order and driving from the restaurant, the driver took a small motorboat out to a customer who was out fishing at Chachoengsao’s Bang Pakong River. Still wearing his hot pink motorbike helmet, the driver boated across the river and then paddled to…
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Democracy Index 2020 ranks Thailand 4th in ASEAN, 73rd in the world
The Democracy Index 2020 has placed Thailand 4th in ASEAN and 73rd in the world, categorising it as a, “Flawed Democracy.” The index, which is compiled by The Economist Intelligence Unit, part of the company which publishes The Economist newspaper, measures the state of democracy in 167 countries around the world. Norway has topped the global ranking, sitting firmly in…
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Industry representatives call on government to prioritise vaccination, include tourism workers in first rollout
The Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking is urging the government to make the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines a national agenda and to prioritise those working in the tourism industry. According to a Bangkok Post report, the JSCCIB says tourism workers need to be vaccinated to keep them safe while interacting with travellers. It has also suggested that…
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Thai Red Cross is calling on recovered Covid-19 patients to donate plasma
The Thai Red Cross Society is urging fully recovered Covid-19 patients to donate their plasma. They say the plasma could contain antibodies that can be used to treat infected patients. According to the director of the Red Cross’s National Blood Centre, the plasma of the recovered patients contain antibodies against the coronavirus. The potential plasma or the so-called “Covid-19 Convalescent…
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Around 100 foreigners allegedly scammed by housing project company
A housing project in the central province Phetchaburi is under fire after it allegedly defrauded around 100 foreigners with damages totalling 2 billion baht. The housing project allegedly issued illegal land documents and lured in foreign buyers, primarily from the United Kingdom and Russia, advertising the project on websites marketed toward those overseas. Most of the land title deeds for…
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Thailand News Today | Thailand fallout from Burmese coup | February 3
With potential sanctions and boycotts against Myanmar likely following the military coup, the Thai-Myanmar Business Council says Thai investors are concerned their businesses in the neighbouring country will be affected. As for now, it’s unclear what effect the coup will have on Thai-owned businesses in Myanmar. The country’s economy, already battered by the Covid-19 pandemic, is expected to slow down…
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Police in Bangkok arrest 13 people for allegedly running an online gambling operation
Police in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao district arrested 13 people for allegedly operating an illegal online gambling operation where people could place bets on lottery outcomes. The bust is part of a major crackdown on illegal gambling carried out after Covid-19 outbreaks at gambling dens in Rayong and Chon Buri. Acting on a search warrant, police raided a home off Soi…
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What’s happening in Myanmar? The background noise that led to an Army coup
Myanmar’s military has assumed control of the country in a coup in the early hours of Monday, February 1st. It wasn’t a total surprise as some of the Military’s leaders had been huffing and puffing out load about the November general elections when Aung San Suu Kyi’s NLD party won all but 33 seats of the 476 seat national parliament.…
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Pattaya banker detained on theft charges, allegedly defrauded local expats in investment scam
Pattaya police detained a former assistant manager of a local bank branch after he allegedly scammed numerous foreigners, tricking some of them into investments that led to significant losses and using invalid documents to fake transactions. A group of foreigners filed a complaint with the Pattaya City Police against the bank branch’s former assistant manager Chaisit Sappermphool on fraud charges.…
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Samut Sakhon officials seal off migrant workers in 7 factories for entire month
Health officials in the central province of Samut Sakhon have taken the unprecedented step of sealing off 7 factories, where 40,000 migrant labourers live and work, until the end of February. The action is aimed at halting the spread of the Covid-19 virus. Public Health Permanent Secretary, Kiatipoom Wongrajit, says over 9,000 infections have been found in the 7 factories,…
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Elderly Thai man killed in violent attack in California
An 84 year old Thai man has died after being brutally attacked outside his home in San Francisco, in the US state of California. CCTV footage shows Vicha Ratanapakdee being approached by a man who pushes him violently to the ground before running away. The attack took place on the footpath outside Vicha’s home early on Thursday morning, with the…
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Medical expert calls on Thais to trust vaccines and help control Covid-19
The dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Siriraj Hospital is calling on Thai people to have faith in Covid-19 vaccines and cooperate with efforts to halt the spread of the virus. Dr. Prasit Watanapa was speaking during a Facebook Live broadcast, saying Thailand needs to build up herd immunity if the virus is to be suppressed. With over 100…
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UPDATE: “Hundreds” of investors caught in alleged Kasikorn Bank branch fraud in Pattaya
CORRECTION: In an earlier story about this case we referred to a Chinese man losing 130 BILLION baht in the scheme. The amount was actually 130 MILLION baht. We apologise for the error. Hundreds, perhaps more than 400, investors have been allegedly defrauded by an assistant bank manager at a Kasikorn bank branch in Pattaya. The assistant manager, named in…
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Experts say UK virus mutation may affect vaccine efficacy
A new mutation of the Covid-19 virus, which has been found in a strain currently circulating in the UK, may have an impact on the efficacy of vaccines, according to Public Health England. The E484K mutation has already been detected in South Africa and Brazil and has now been found in at least 11 samples of the B.1.1.7 strain in…
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Samut Sakhon’s shrimp market to remain closed until February 15
Samut Sakhon’s Central Shrimp Market, the epicentre of Thailand’s recent wave of Covid-19, will remain closed until February 15. The market can reopen once the overall hygiene situation at the market and surrounding area has improved, according to the province’s disease control committee. Local officials say the shrimp market needs to remain closed until the market structure and nearby residential…
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Pattaya launches “Welcome Back to Pattaya” campaign to bring back tourists
Pattaya City has launched the “Welcome Back Pattaya” campaign to lure tourists back to the city as Covid-19 situation continually improves. The campaign aims to attract domestic tourists and is expected to boost the local economy after many businesses in the province were ordered to close last month. Pattaya has officially opened up to domestic tourism, Mayor Sonthaya Khunplume told…
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Outbreak in Vietnam linked to the more contagious UK variant of Covid-19
The more contagious UK variant of Covid-19 is linked to a new outbreak in Vietnam with 276 people infected in 10 provinces and cities, according to the country’s health minister. The new cases are a major uptick for Vietnam, which has only recorded 1,850 cases and 35 coronavirus-related deaths since the start of the pandemic last year. Vietnam had its…
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Thai investors in Myanmar concerned with future business following the military coup
With potential sanctions and boycotts against Myanmar likely following the military coup, the Thai-Myanmar Business Council says Thai investors are concerned their businesses in the neighbouring country will be affected. It’s unclear what effect the coup will have on Thai-owned businesses in Myanmar. The country’s economy, already battered by the Covid-19 pandemic, is expected to slow down with potential sanctions.…
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Police chief transferred after protesters rally at police station, hang banner calling for monarchy reform
A district police chief was abruptly transferred from his post after pro-democracy protesters staged a rally and hung banners at a police station in the Isaan province Chaiyaphum. Protesters called for monarchy reform in Thailand and democracy in Myanmar following the military coup. Protesters from the People’s Group, also known as Ratsadon, marched from a local school to the police…
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Elderly expat dies after falling from Pattaya condominium
An 88 year old American man died last night after he fell from his eighth floor condominium in Pattaya. Police say they suspect the incident was suicide, but are still investigating. A security guard patrolling the area found the man’s body on the ground outside his condominium on Soi Buakhao around 10pm last night and alerted Pattaya City Police. Officers found…
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Police arrest 3 Chon Buri gamblers for violating Covid-19 emergency decree – VIDEO
Police in the eastern province of Chon Buri have arrested 3 gamblers, accused of violating the Covid-19 emergency decree. Officers were responding to a tip-off from a member of the public concerned about the spread of the virus. VIDEO: Thai Rath The Pattaya News reports that the arrests took place at a property in the Baan Suan sub-district. Officers arrived…
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Alcohol sellers empty kegs of beer outside Health Ministry to protest Covid rules
Bar owners and breweries in Bangkok have come together to register their frustration at ongoing Covid-19 restrictions by emptying kegs of beer outside the Ministry of Health. Yesterday’s protest action comes a week after the coalition of alcohol sellers called on health officials to ease the rules that are having a severe impact on their livelihoods. In a protest they…
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Police in China bust fake Covid-19 vaccine operation, more than 80 people arrested
Police in China busted a fake Covid-19 vaccine operation, arresting more than 80 people and seizing more than 3,000 doses of the fake vaccine, which were actually just syringes filled with saline solution. The state news agency Xinhua says the bust was part of a law enforcement operation to crackdown on vaccine-related crimes. Police in various provinces including Beijing, Shanghai…
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BTS gives city officials an ultimatum: Pay its debt or Skytrain’s Green Line will shut down
The Bangkok Mass Transit System is giving city officials an ultimatum: Pay off its more than 30 billion baht debt or the Skytrain’s Green Line will shut down. They are giving the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration 60 days to get its finances in order. The administration owes more than 9.6 billion baht in wages related to operating the Green Line, adding up…
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Thai Army boss plays down risk of migrant influx following military coup in Myanmar
A Thai Army commander has moved to reassure citizens over fears that yesterday’s military coup in Myanmar may lead to a surge in illegal migrants. Apichet Suesat from the Third Army says forces continue to man the border between Thailand and Myanmar and anyone trying to enter the Kingdom illegally will be arrested. “We are closely monitoring the situation. Burmese…
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