Covid-19 News

Thailand Covid-19 news, vaccine updates, travel restrictions, and government policies—stay informed on case numbers, safety measures, and global developments. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted source for Covid-19 updates in Thailand.

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  • Samut Sakhon governor to resign, cites poor health after Covid infection and transfer rejection

    Samut Sakhon governor to resign, cites poor health after Covid infection and transfer rejection

    The governor of the central province of Samut Sakhon, Veerasak Vichitsangsri, who recovered from a severe Covid-19 infection earlier this year, has announced that he wishes to resign from his post to spend his time with his family in Ang Thong. The governor had initially requested a transfer, but it was rejected. The governor contracted Covid-19 in December, during the…

  • District chief in Chaiyaphum tests positive for Covid despite receiving 2 doses of AstraZeneca

    District chief in Chaiyaphum tests positive for Covid despite receiving 2 doses of AstraZeneca

    The chief of the Nong Bua Ra We district in the northeastern Thai province of Chaiyaphum has tested positive for Covid. The chief has previously had 2 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, says the provincial communicable disease committee for Chaiyaphum, today. District chief Tinpol Chalermvasutha has travelled to “many places” and participated in “many activities” with other officials from August…

  • Thammasat University’s field hospital in Pathum Thani to run out of vaccines tomorrow

    Thammasat University’s field hospital in Pathum Thani to run out of vaccines tomorrow

    The stock of Covid-19 vaccine doses is low at a Thammasat University field hospital in Pathum Thani, just outside Bangkok, and the director says there are enough doses to last until tomorrow. More AstraZeneca vaccine doses were set to arrive on Saturday, but the order was either delayed or cancelled. Director of the field hospital, Dr Chatchai Mingmalairak, says 5,000…

  • Pfizer made available at Samut Prakan Lotus, large crowds form at 4am

    Pfizer made available at Samut Prakan Lotus, large crowds form at 4am

    Large crowds gathered outside of a Lotus store in central Thailand’s Samut Prakan as early as 4am yesterday after the local hospital announced it was providing Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines at the inoculation site. The Samut Prakan Hospital made a post on Facebook saying the Pfizer vaccine, which was recently donated to Thailand from the US, is now available for those…

  • Monday Covid Update: 21,157 new cases and 182 deaths

    Monday Covid Update: 21,157 new cases and 182 deaths

    21,157 new cases and 182 new coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Since April 1, in the latest and most severe wave of the virus in Thailand, the CCSA has reported 899,451 Covid-19 cases. There are currently 210,934 people in Thailand being treated for the coronavirus. Out of the new cases reported today, 658…

  • Phuket Covid-19 infections break 100 for the second time

    Phuket Covid-19 infections break 100 for the second time

    The Phuket Sandbox originally planned to suspend or revise the programme if ever Covid-19 infections reached over 90 in a week, but that ideal has been abandoned as daily infections hit triple digits for the second time in a week. Local infections hit a new record today of 109, topping the August 11 record of 104 by 5 people as…

  • 3 million Sinovac doses arrive in Bangkok from China

    3 million Sinovac doses arrive in Bangkok from China

    Today, the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok announced via a Facebook post that an additional 3 million doses of Sinovace have arrived in Bangkok. The post also said that China has currently delivered 24.55 million doses of Sinovac to the Land of Smiles. Thailand’s Disease Control Department says 23,476,869 vaccines doses have been administered in Thailand since February 28. Of that…

  • Opposition party suing government for Covid-19 failure

    Opposition party suing government for Covid-19 failure

    The Move Forward Party has announced that it is suing the government for its alleged mishandling of the Covid-19 pandemic now ravaging Thailand. They plan on launching a class-action lawsuit in the coming week to demand compensation for the government’s failure to sufficiently address Covid-19 as the third wave causes record infections and deaths every day. The MFP is a…

  • Covid UPDATE: 21,882 new infections, provincial totals

    Covid UPDATE: 21,882 new infections, provincial totals

    The CCSA has confirmed 21,882 new infections of the Coronavirus and 209 Covid-related deaths around Thailand. 245 of today’s cases were detected in the Thai prison system. 21,106 patients have been released from hospitals and field hospitals. 210,943 patients are currently still under state care, 5,615 people are considered in a critical condition, and 1,172 patients are on artificial respiration…

  • Phuket restrictions to stay in place until at least the end of the month, exemptions apply

    Phuket restrictions to stay in place until at least the end of the month, exemptions apply

    Phuket’s restrictions will stay in place until at least the end of the month. This includes closing off the island to visitors, with exceptions. This move is in response to the rising Covid cases in the region. The exception to the rule is Phuket residents and visitors associated with the “Sandbox” scheme. Also, people who have had 2 doses of…

  • CCSA meets today to extend Covid measures, or ease restrictions

    CCSA meets today to extend Covid measures, or ease restrictions

    Today’s meeting of Thailand’s peak Covid organisations will decide the continuation, or the juggling, of restrictions as the CCSA and government departments grapple with country’s steady, but worrisome, increases in both new infections and deaths over the past month. Currently, 29 provinces are Dark Red Zones, classified as the maximum and strict controlled area designation. The CCSA will meet today…

  • Covid UPDATE Sunday: 21,882 new infections, 209 deaths, new briefs

    Covid UPDATE Sunday: 21,882 new infections, 209 deaths, new briefs

    Today the Thai public health department has announced 21,882 new infections of the Coronavirus and 209 Covid-related deaths. 245 were detected in the Thai prison system. 21,106 patients have been released from hospitals and field hospitals. 210,943 patients are currently still under state care, 5,615 people are considered in a critical condition, whilst 1,172 patients are on artificial respiration –…

  • Medics want ban on vaccine exports, legal experts warn against it

    Medics want ban on vaccine exports, legal experts warn against it

    As the Covid-19 pandemic rages on in Thailand with growing numbers of infections and deaths, more and more medical experts are pushing for the government to intervene to stop Siam Bioscience from exporting AstraZeneca vaccines as the country experiences a shortage of vaccines to fight Covid-19 domestically. But legal experts are warning that this is a bad idea. A member…

  • Cancelling delay, GPO will buy 8.5 million Chinese antigen test kits

    Cancelling delay, GPO will buy 8.5 million Chinese antigen test kits

    The Government Pharmaceutical Organisation has made 2 u-turns in as many days with plans to now go ahead and purchase 8.5 million antigen test kits from a Chinese manufacturer with questionable accuracy. The GPO had originally announced the plan to import Sars-CoV-2 Antigen and Leccurate Antibody Test products by Lepu Medical Technology before changing course and pausing the purchase after…

  • Covid UPDATE: 22,086 new infections, provincial totals

    Covid UPDATE: 22,086 new infections, provincial totals

    The Thai public health department announced another 22,086 new infections to Thailand’s total. 270 of today’s cases stem from the Thai prison system. 217 Covid-related deaths were also announced. 23,672 people were released from hospital care. 60% of people who died in the past 24 hours were 60 years old plus. 18 of the total died at home. The median age…

  • Widow of former Prime Minister dies of Covid-19

    Widow of former Prime Minister dies of Covid-19

    The widow of former Prime Minister Chatichai, Thanpuying Boonruen Choonhavan, has died early this morning of illness connected to Covid-19. Details around the death of the 101 year old widow are vague, but the announcement was made on Facebook today by her granddaughter. Thanpuying had one daughter who survived her, Vanee, and a son Kraisak who died last year in…

  • Covid UPDATE Saturday: 217 Covid-related deaths, news briefs

    Covid UPDATE Saturday: 217 Covid-related deaths, news briefs

    This morning the Thai public health department announced another 22,086 new infections to Thailand’s total. 270 of today’s cases stem from the Thai prison system. 217 Covid-related deaths were also announced. 23,672 people were released from hospital care. Provincial totals will be announced early this afternoon. • According to the Ministry of Public Health, Covid-19 patients in Thailand are taking…

  • Almost 1 million Favipiravir pills are taken daily in Thailand

    Almost 1 million Favipiravir pills are taken daily in Thailand

    According to the Ministry of Public Health, Covid-19 patients in Thailand are taking almost a million Favipiravir pills each day as infection numbers surge around the country. The daily Covid-19 infection rates have now crossed over the 20,000 mark and with so many new cases, the demand for the antiviral tablets is skyrocketing. The Government Pharmaceutical Organisation has been called…

  • Thai-made subunit Covid-19 vaccine gets ok for human trials

    Thai-made subunit Covid-19 vaccine gets ok for human trials

    Approval was received to begin testing on human subjects in September for a Covid-19 subunit vaccine created in Thailand by the Vaccine Research Centre of Chulalongkorn University and Baiya Phytopharm Company. The vaccine is the second to be racing to clear testing phases and be used to fight Covid-19 in Thailand. The other, an mRNA vaccine, is being developed by…

  • Bangkok Hospital in Pattaya announces vaccines for foreigners

    Bangkok Hospital in Pattaya announces vaccines for foreigners

    Bangkok Hospital just announced a new scheme to offer Covid-19 vaccines to foreigners in Pattaya meeting certain qualifications. The hospital chain posted on their social media announcements a plan to offer free Covid-19 vaccines on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. After months of outcry, Thailand has finally begun to make vaccines more available to foreigners. The plan is a bit strange…

  • Orphaned girls recover from Covid, enter Samut Prakan orphanage

    Orphaned girls recover from Covid, enter Samut Prakan orphanage

    Last month, the tragic story of the 2 young girls who lost their mother to Covid, and how before dying the mother said it was her hope the girls would go to an orphanage, rattled Thailand. Then came the news that the girls had contracted Covid. Now, it is being reported that both girls have made a full recovery and…

  • New Zealand planning cautious border re-opening from next year

    New Zealand planning cautious border re-opening from next year

    New Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, says the country hopes to re-open its borders from 2022, adding that the process will be a gradual one. According to an AFP report, Ardern says being cautious is vital if New Zealand is to avoid importing the highly-contagious Delta variant currently wreaking havoc in many countries around the world. By contrast, life in…

  • Health Minister says Thailand will have over 32 million Pfizer doses by end of the year

    Health Minister says Thailand will have over 32 million Pfizer doses by end of the year

    Thailand’s Public Health Minister says there will be 32.5 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine in the country by the end of the year. According to a Nation Thailand report, Anutin Charnvirakul says the government has ordered 20 million doses of the Covid-19 mRNA vaccine and Pfizer has also offered to send an additional 10 million doses this year. “This,…

  • Bangkok doctor who received 2 doses of Sinovac dies of Covid-19

    Bangkok doctor who received 2 doses of Sinovac dies of Covid-19

    The death from Covid-19 of another fully vaccinated healthcare worker has led to increased calls for Pfizer booster shots. The Bangkok Post reports that the death of Dr Saranya Lapanich was announced on Facebook by Anutra Chittinandana from the Royal College of Physicians of Thailand. Dr Saranya, who was also known as Dr Am, worked at Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital in…

  • Second lot of Pfizer vaccines for healthcare workers to arrive tomorrow

    Second lot of Pfizer vaccines for healthcare workers to arrive tomorrow

    The Department of Disease Control says the second batch of Pfizer Covid-19 vaccines donated by the US is expected to arrive tomorrow. The doses are earmarked for frontline healthcare workers in all 77 provinces. The Bangkok Post reports that DDC chief Opas Karnkawinpong has confirmed the delivery. The US government has donated the 1.5 million Pfizer doses to help Thailand…

  • Covid-19 plan recruits 2,000 pharmacies in Bangkok to assist

    Covid-19 plan recruits 2,000 pharmacies in Bangkok to assist

    A new plan has recruited 2,000 pharmacies to aid in Bangkok’s home isolation programme in order to assist in Covid-19 diagnosis and treatment. The Pharmacy Council of Thailand brought in pharmacies across the city to provide service for people isolating at home due to Covid-19 infections. The plan was put in place hinging on the purchase of 8.5 million antigen…

  • GPO pauses antigen test kits deal after skimping accusations

    GPO pauses antigen test kits deal after skimping accusations

    After a scathing letter from the Rural Doctors Society accusing the Government Pharmaceutical Organisation of basing their decision solely on price with no concern for quality or accuracy, the GPO walked back their plan to buy 8.5 million antigen test kits from Lepu Medical Technology of China. The purchase will be delayed in order to test the quality of the…

  • Expert: Half of Thailand infected in 100 days without vaccines

    Expert: Half of Thailand infected in 100 days without vaccines

    Amid the growing outcry from the scientific community to reroute AstraZeneca vaccines set for export to urgently vaccinate people in Thailand, one expert warns of the harrowing possibility that half of Thailand’s 70 million people could get Covid-19 if we don’t vaccinate at least 40 million people within the next 100 days. Dr Manoon Leechawengwongs, a leading expert and specialist…

  • Charter flights from Phuket approved by CAAT for Sandboxers

    Charter flights from Phuket approved by CAAT for Sandboxers

    A new chance for travel out of the Phuket Sandbox was just approved as the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand announced they will allow airlines to schedule charter flights between Phuket to Bangkok. The permission granted comes after Thai Smile petitioned the government to allow a flight on August 14 to assist people who travelled into the Phuket Sandbox, but…

  • Covid UPDATE: 147 deaths, 22,782 infections, provincial totals

    Covid UPDATE: 147 deaths, 22,782 infections, provincial totals

    Today the Thai public health department has announced 22,782 new infections, 375 of those from Thai prisons, along with 147 new Covid-related deaths in the past 24 hours. 23,649 patients have been released from hospitals or field hospitals as well. 209,028 patients remain under state care, but 68,335 infected people are in home or community isolation. 5,495 patients are listed…