Friday Covid Update: Provincial totals; pregnant women urged to get vaccinated

271 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, raising the pandemic’s death toll in Thailand to 12,374 with 12,280 of those fatalities recorded since April 1 in the latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 in Thailand.

The infection rate has declined over the past week, but the daily fatality count remains high. A spokesperson for the CCSA said most of the deaths involve the elderly and those with underlying health conditions, but there has been an uptick in the number of deaths involving Covid-19 patients who are pregnant. She said pregnant women are at an “extremely high risk” of a severe infection if they were to contract Covid-19 and urged expecting women to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

14,653 new Covid-19 infections were reported today by Thailand’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In the 24-hour period since the last count, the CCSA recorded 18,262 recoveries from the coronavirus. There are now 159,800 people receiving treatment for Covid-19. The number of active cases has been on a downward trend as the number of recoveries continue to exceed the number of new cases.

Since the start of the pandemic last year, the CCSA has recorded 1,249,140 confirmed Covid-19 cases. The latest wave has accounted for 1,220,277 of those cases.

Bangkok remains the epicentre with 3,428 new infections today, followed by Samut Prakan with 1,237new cases, Samut Sakhon with 859 new cases, and Chon Buri with 822.

Out of the new cases reported today, 256 were found in correctional facilities. More than 40,000 inmates in Thailand’s overcrowded prisons have tested positive for Covid-19 over the past several months. Infections at the jails and detention centres have been reported on a daily basis.

Provincial totals from the Thai government’s news bureau…