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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Sponsored Do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?
Thailand’s healthcare system is well-regarded across Southeast Asia, with options ranging from public hospitals to world-class private facilities. But when it comes to foreign residents or tourists, healthcare access isn’t as straightforward. So, do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?...
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No Covid-19 spike in Samut Sakhon, 900 “new” cases is old information – Public Health Ministry
The 900 “new” Covid-19 cases reported yesterday in Samut Sakhon, which gained national media coverage and sparked panic, is actually old information that has already been included in reports, according to the Public Health Ministry. The Bangkok Post says figure of 900 new Covid-19 cases in the province is “old” and was “included in a total of new cases of…
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Struggling massage parlours petition government for financial assistance
Representatives of Thailand’s spa and massage parlour industry are pleading with the government to provide some form of tailored financial aid to offset the impact of Covid-19. Yesterday, the Charawi Association for the Conservation of Thai Massage submitted a letter to PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, who also chairs the government’s Covid-19 task force. In it, they call on his administration to…
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Phuket government plans to require quarantine for “red zone” arrivals
People travelling to Phuket from a province classified as a “red zone” for a high risk of Covid-19 will face a 14 day quarantine, either at a facility or at a resident’s home, according to Phuket governor Narong Woonciew. A provincial order has not been issued yet and people can still enter Phuket without a required quarantine. Travellers coming from…
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Thai PM promises free Covid vaccine for half the population in initial rollout
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has repeated his pledge to vaccinate half the population for free in 2021. Thailand will take delivery of its first supply of China’s Covid-19 vaccine by the end of next month, with an initial 200,000 doses of the Sinovac jab reserved. First in line will be healthcare workers and elderly people considered high risk. Following the initial…
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UPDATE: Mor Chana App – mobile app to track Covid situation
The CCSA is calling on people, particularly those in 5 provinces with high risk and strict control measures, to download Mor Chana (download links below), a new mobile app to help identify individuals who have been exposed to infected patients using GPS and Bluetooth technology to track their location. People travelling from the 28 Red Zone areas will likely be…
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Covid-19 cases linked to Ang Thong cockfighting spreads to neighbouring provinces
Covid-19 cases linked to 2 cockfighting arenas in the central province Ang Thong have spread to neighbouring provinces, according to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Cockfighting is now temporarily banned in various provinces to prevent the spread of Covid-19. Out of the 38 cases linked to the cockfighting areas, 68% of the cases are asymptomatic, according to the CCSA.…
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Thai Airways cuts down international flight schedule
Due to the ongoing spread of Covid-19, Thai Airways is reducing its international flight schedule from now until March 27. Domestic flights will still operate as normal under the airline’s sister carrier Thai Smile. Thai Airways will reduce international flights to the following destinations: Asia Hong Kong: One daily return flight – TG638/TG639 Manila: One weekly return flight – TG624/TG625…
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No travel ban on British arrivals, quarantine facilities tighten rules
While there’s no ban on travellers from the United Kingdom, quarantine facilities are tightening disease control measures for British arrivals after a new, faster-spreading Covid-19 variant was reported in the European country. British arrivals must now stay in their room for the majority of the stay under new measures set by the Department of Disease Control. The department ordered ASQ…
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CCSA Update: 365 new Covid-19 cases and 1 death
365 new Covid-19 cases and 1 death were reported today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. There are now 4,847 active cases in Thailand. A total of 9,331 Covid-19 cases and 66 coronavirus-related deaths have been reported by the CCSA since the start of the outbreak last year. The latest coronavirus-related fatality is a 63 year old…
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Restaurants in Bangkok that violate the measures will be shut
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration is to close restaurants that don’t comply with the Covid-19 restrictions for 14 days. Restaurant owners must follow the disease control measures strictly if they don’t want to worsen their business further. The Bangkok Governor Aswin Kwanmuang says that, in all food shops in Bangkok, alcoholic drinks are banned from being served. “All districts must ensure that restaurants comply strictly with the Covid-19 steps of the BMA, such as socially distanced seating plans and the use of the Thai Chana application.” A restaurant owner told the Bangkok Post that the restaurant will be happy to…
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CCSA: Illegal gambling is a major factor in the new wave of Covid-19
Illegal gambling has become even more of a problem as health officials try to track down elusive gamblers after a Covid-19 outbreak at a Rayong gambling den spread to other provinces. Gambling has been a major factor in the new wave of coronavirus infections as many compulsive gamblers tend to frequent various venues and also travel in groups, according to…
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Bangkok website lists 11 “high risk” areas, urges visitors to identify themselves
A Bangkok website, known simply as BKK Covid-19, has listed 11 areas and venues now considered “high risk” and urged recent visitors to come forward. The places in question are spread across several provinces in the centre and east of the country. Those who have visited the following since December 15 are urged to register. 1. Samut Sakhon province 2.…
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Over 10,000 schools to close across Thailand in bid to curb virus spread
Over 10,000 schools, in at least 28 Thai provinces, are to close until January 31 and switch to online learning, in an effort to curtail the spread of the Covid-19 virus. The Kingdom is in the grip of a resurgence after months of no local transmission. On the southern resort island of Phuket, Governor Narong Woonciew has ordered all schools…
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“Don’t try this at home,” Thai FDA warns against self-diagnosis using Covid-19 rapid test
With Covid-19 rapid test kits now available online, the Thai Food and Drug Administration is warning the public not to use the tests at home, unless they are a medical professional. Now that Thailand is experiencing a new wave of infections, with active cases exceeding 4,000, far higher than the first wave’s peak of 1,451 active cases in April, FDA…
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Vaccines bring hope, but we won’t be out of the woods for some time – Thai health officials
Health officials in Thailand have welcomed the development of a number of seemingly-effective Covid-19 vaccines but warn that the “new normal” will remain for some time. In an interview with the Bangkok Post, Opas Karnkawinpong from the Department of Disease Control says people will still have to wear masks, observe social distancing, and wash their hands regularly. “The challenge posed…
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Los Angeles ambulances won’t take cardiac patients unlikely to survive as Covid crisis worsens
As the state of California finds itself in the midst of a full-blown Covid-19 crisis, medical workers in Los Angeles are being faced with some stark choices. According to County Supervisor Hilda Sollis, a memo issued by the county’s Emergency Medical Services instructs ambulance workers not to pick up patients who’ve suffered a heart attack if their chances of surviving…
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A year of COVID – from Wuhan to World Pandemic | VIDEO
12 months ago the news of a mysterious respiratory illness started to emerge from hospitals in the central Chinese province of Hubei. Chinese health authorities said they were investigating a small cluster of pneumonia-like cases with an unknown cause linked to a seafood market in Wuhan. Those early days have given rise to any number of conspiracy theories that the…
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UPDATE: 5 coastal provinces still open – Prayut rejects “total lockdown” proposal
The proposal for a “total lockdown” restricting travel in and out of 5 coastal provinces was rejected by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. The provinces, Samut Sakhon, Chon Buri, Rayong, Chanthaburi and Trat, are implementing strict measures to control the spread of the virus, but the provinces will not be completely sealed off. In earlier reports, Deputy Public Health Minister Satit Pitutacha…
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CCSA Update: 527 new Covid-19 cases
527 new Covid-19 cases were reported in today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. Thailand now has 4,504 active coronavirus cases in 55 of Thailand’s 77 provinces. A total of 8,966 people in Thailand have reportedly been infected Covid-19 and 65 people have died since February of last year. Out of the 527 new cases, 439 cases…
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Public health official urges Bangkokians to eat at home
People in Bangkok should eat at home as much as possible to lower the risk of spreading the coronavirus, according to the director-general of the Department of Health. While there is now a ban on dine-in service from 9pm to 6am in Bangkok, Dr. Suwannachai Wattanacharoencha says people should still eat a home during the day. He says the best…
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Officials in virus-hit Samut Sakhon put out urgent call for second field hospital
A local official in the central province of Samut Sakhon is pleading for a second field hospital to contain the spread of Covid-19. The province is at the epicentre of a resurgence in the virus, since Thailand’s first local case in months was detected in a fish market in the Muang district last month. Since then, the virus has spread…
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5 Thai provinces ordered into total lockdown
5 provinces in Thailand are in total lockdown, with travel restrictions barring anyone from leaving or entering, unless absolutely necessary. The provinces affected by the tough new measures are the eastern provinces of Chon Buri, Rayong, Chanthaburi and Trat, as well as the central province of Samut Sakhon, where Thailand’s Covid-19 resurgence originated last month. Thai PBS World reports that…
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Thai PM says government plans to buy a further 35 million vaccine doses
Thailand hopes to buy an additional 35 million doses of a Covid-19 vaccine, giving the country a total supply of 63 million doses, according to PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. He has not confirmed where the additional supply will come from, but according to a Bangkok Post report, he says the government will ensure the vaccines meet Food and Drug Administration criteria.…
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Top Thai epidemiologist pushes for 4 week nationwide lockdown
Thailand needs a nationwide lockdown for at least 4 weeks to control the spread of the coronavirus, according to leading Thai epidemiologist Thira Woratanarat. But many governors and other public officials disagree with the idea of strict lockdown measures, especially on shutting down dine-in services, saying it could negatively impact on the poor. Thira, who is on the faculty of…
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CCSA Update: 745 new Covid-19 cases and 1 death
745 new Covid-19 cases and 1 new coronavirus related death were reported today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. Thailand now has 4,022 active Covid-19 cases with a total of 8,439 reported cases and 65 deaths. New Covid-19 death A 56 year old man from Bangkok died after testing positive for Covid-19, according to CCSA spokesperson Taweesin…
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No lockdown in Phuket, governor calls for more disease control measures
There’s no lockdown in Phuket, the provincial governor says, but protective measures are in place to prevent the spread of the Covid-19. The province currently has 3 confirmed Covid-19 cases, classifying it as a “yellow zone,” a high surveillance area. Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew says Phuket’s borders are still open to outside visitors, but all of them must be screened…
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Thailand to get China’s Sinovac Biotech Covid-19 vaccine next month
In the midst of a new wave of Covid-19 infections, Thailand will get 2 million vaccine doses from China’s Sinovac Biotech. The first batch of 200,000 doses will arrive next month, according to the Public Health Ministry. Another 800,000 doses will arrive in March and the last order of 1 million doses will arrive in April. Since the outbreak last…
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Thai VietJet offers passengers change of flights during Covid outbreak
Thai VietJet, along with all the other Thai domestic airlines, is being impacted by a drop in traffic during the current list of restrictions during the latest Covid-19 outbreak in Thailand. According to Thai Residents, “for passengers who booked tickets and made payments before January 1, 2021 with travel date between January 5 – 3, 2021, can change their travel…
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New restrictions in place, get ready for additional screening at airports | VIDEO
Good morning and sawasdee krub from the Phuket Domestic Terminal. Additional restrictions announced today in relation to the 28 provincial red zones are now in affect. You can read the latest about these restrictions here… https://thethaiger.com/coronavirus/update-new-restrictions-come-into-force-in-thailand-from-today Keep up to date with all the latest Covid restrictions and changes to our lives here in Thailand at thethaiger.com
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UPDATE: New restrictions come into force in Thailand from today
Some new restrictions have been introduced and others tightened as the Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha announced the latest list of restrictions taking effect from today. The latest list was published in the Royal Gazette yesterday and are now in force. On Friday the BMA suggested that restaurants in Bangkok may be prevented from providing in house dining, and providing take…
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