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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Study confirms mixing AstraZeneca and mRNA vaccines as good as 2 mRNA doses
A recent study of Covid-19 vaccines shows that using AstraZeneca for the first dose, followed by an mRNA vaccine for the second, is as effective as 2 mRNA doses. The AstraZeneca vaccine is a viral vector vaccine, whereas vaccines such as Pfizer and Moderna use mRNA technology. Thai PBS World reports that the study was carried out in Germany, using…
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Officials reluctant to cancel Phuket sandbox, lifeline for desperate locals
Officials have confirmed that the Phuket sandbox scheme will not be cancelled, despite rising infections on the island. At least not for now. The Bangkok Post reports that despite the island reporting 40 new infections yesterday, the highest number since it re-opened to foreign tourists, the governor is reluctant to put an end to the financial lifeline for desperate locals.…
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Wednesday Covid Update: Record high of 16,533 new cases
A record high of 16,533 new Covid-19 cases were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. In the latest and most severe wave of infections in Thailand, first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has reported 514,498 Covid-19 cases. Today, the CCSA also recorded another 133 coronavirus-related deaths. Out of the new cases, 202 were found in correctional…
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“Phuket Sandbox” still on, provincial restrictions set after uptick in Covid-19
The “Phuket Sandbox” is still on, but the uptick in coronavirus infections pose a threat to the tourism experiment. Before the July 1 reopening, the government said it would reconsider the travel scheme if cases exceeded 90 Covid-19 infections. Over the past week, the island reported 125 new infections. With the weekly case count exceeding the government’s threshold, new restrictions…
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Phuket officials add new layers of restrictions, Central closed for 7 days
It’s starting to get real in Phuket. New measures have been announced to further restrict the gathering places for people. Meanwhile, for now, the Sandbox continues unabated. The new restrictions are effective until at least August 2. The province has already surpassed its threshold of 90 cases in a week, earlier cited as the upper limit before the government would…
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Korat construction camp closed following Covid outbreak
Another construction camp has been ordered to close after workers were discovered to be infected with Covid. This time it is in Nakhon Ratchasima/Korat, the northeastern Thai province. The closure order came yesterday. 90 workers from the BSY construction Co. tested positive for Covid. Thus, the construction camp and future factory has been ordered to be sealed off for 1…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 14,150 new cases; provincial totals
CAPTION: Bang Sue railway station yesterday, the main vaccination centre in Bangkok. The photographer said that it was “chaos”. PHOTO: Facebook/Akbar Senior Motani 14,150 new Covid-19 cases were reported today by the CCSA this morning, raising the total since the start of the pandemic last year to 526,828. The latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 infections, first recorded in…
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Bang Sue walk-in vaccinations for elderly expats to end Saturday
Walk-in vaccination services for elderly expats at Bangkok’s Bang Sue Grand Station is ending on Saturday. The government is preparing to roll out the next phase in its Covid-19 immunisation plan. Starting Sunday, August 1, registration in Bangkok will open up to those 18 and older, but there will be no walk-in services. Until Saturday, foreign residents who are 75…
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Travel bubble plans abandoned amid global spread of Delta variant
Plans for travel pacts between countries are being dropped, as the Covid-19 pandemic shows no sign of abating. The so-called “travel bubbles” were designed to revive international travel between low-risk countries but have had a number of false starts and now look to be shelved. TTR Weekly reports that an arrangement between Australia and New Zealand, allowing for quarantine-free travel…
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Over 66 people arrested in police raid at Pattaya beach club
Police in Pattaya have raided a beach club and arrested at least 66 people accused of violating the emergency decree. According to a Pattaya News report, the raid took place at around 8.30pm last night and those arrested were a mixture of foreign and Thai nationals. 37 Thais and 29 foreigners are accused of drinking, partying, and mingling, in violation…
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Government under increasing pressure to share details of vaccine procurement deals
As Thailand battles its worst Covid-19 wave since the start of the pandemic, the government is coming under increasing pressure to divulge details of its vaccine procurement decisions. The Bangkok Post reports that at least 333 academics, media representatives, and individuals have signed a statement calling for full disclosure of everything related to the country’s vaccine procurement deals. The statement…
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Covid patients with positive antigen test no longer need PCR test prior to treatment
The government’s Covid-19 task force says people who’ve taken an antigen test while at community isolation venues do not need to submit to a PCR test before getting medical treatment. The Bangkok Post reports that the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration has made the announcement in an effort to accelerate treatment for patients waiting in community isolation. CCSA spokesperson Apisamai…
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Tuesday Covid Update: 14,150 new cases and 118 deaths
Today, Thailand’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported 14,150 cases and 118 coronavirus-related deaths. In the latest and most severe wave in Thailand, first recorded on April 1, the CCSA has recorded 497,965 Covid-19 cases. Out of the new cases, 245 cases were found in correctional facilities. Over the past several months, more than 40,000 inmates have been infected with…
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Sinovac/AstraZeneca highly effective, according to Thai research
Today, Thailand’s Centre of Excellence in Clinical Virology from the Faculty of Medicine of Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok, says a vaccine cocktail of Sinovac/AstraZeneca is “highly effective”. Controversial doctor Yong Poovorawan says 2 doses of the inactivated virus vaccine can help “immunity rise to an average level of 100 units”. Further, if 2 doses of the vector vaccine are administered…
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Phuket vice governor says “Sandbox” tourists aren’t scared off by Covid situation
Thailand’s latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 isn’t scaring away potential “Phuket Sandbox” tourists… at least that’s what the island province’s vice governor says. The official recently shot back claims that around a third of tourists who entered under the new reopening scheme decided to return home because of the continuous rise of Covid-19 infections and deaths. Under the…
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Ministry of Education seeks 21.6 billion education subsidy
Tomorrow, Thailand’s Ministry of Education will submit a proposal to Cabinet for approval of a 21.6 billion baht to subsidise education costs. The figure comes from 2,000 baht a student in elementary/vocations education systems. The education subsidy is to help reduce the financial strain on parents that have developed as a result of Covid. The proposal came up yesterday in…
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Ayutthaya logs 255 new infections, hospital beds full
Today, Ayutthaya, the province a few hours north of Bangkok, revealed they had 255 new Covid infections and 3 deaths. Also, all their main hospitals and field hospitals have run out of beds, says the governor Panu Yaemsri. The total cases for the province are now just shy of 7,000 people. The death stands at 52. The governor says of…
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Monday UPDATE: 15,376 new infections, Provincial report
Thailand’s public health department has confirmed another 15,376 new infections and 87 Covid-related deaths over the past 24 hours. 1,041 of the new cases are from the Thai prison system. Thailand has now reached half a million reported Covid infections since the start of 2020. Just 4 months ago, when the so-called 3rd wave kicked off, there were 1,247 patients in…
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Government submits proposal to allow department store restaurants to sell food online
Department store restaurants may be allowed to sell food online through a proposal that will be submitted to the CCSA today for approval, says deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul, today. The spokeswoman says the CCSA’s operation centre decided on July 22 that the Ministry of Public Health should decide on criteria to allow department store restaurants to sell their food…
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Thai Red Cross denies its order of Moderna led to hospitals receiving fewer doses
The Thai Red Cross Society is denying claims that its order of 1 million doses of the Moderna vaccine affected the number of doses allocated to private hospitals. The Government Pharmaceutical Organisation is processing the order on behalf of the society. According to a Bangkok Post report, several hospitals have cancelled appointments for the Moderna vaccine saying they’ve been allocated…
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Hotels hope for increase in foreign tourists to offset slump in domestic demand
Hotels in Thailand’s normally busy tourist hotspots are hoping that a further re-opening to foreign travellers will offset the drop in domestic demand. The Bangkok Post reports that travel curbs have decimated domestic tourism in places like Phuket, Krabi, and Phang Nga. Kongsak Khoopongsakorn from the Thai Hotels Association says the Phuket sandbox scheme welcomed around 10,000 tourists in its…
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Health Ministry insists donated Pfizer doses will go to medical workers first, not VIPs
Thailand’s Health Ministry has dismissed rumours that healthcare workers will get just 200,000 of the 1.5 million Pfizer doses donated by the US. Rungrueng Kijphati says 500,000 doses are being reserved as booster shots for the country’s healthcare workers. He says doses are expected to arrive later this month and administration will begin in August. “It is not true that…
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Thai government could learn a thing or two from other countries, say Thais abroad
Thai nationals living abroad say their government should learn from how the pandemic is being managed in other countries. The Bangkok Post has spoken to a number of Thai citizens living overseas, who say they’re impressed with the financial compensation offered and the efficacy of vaccine rollouts in their host countries. A 31 year old Thai student at the University…
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Monday Covid report, world situation and news briefs
Thailand’s public health department has confirmed another 15,376 new infections and 87 Covid-related deaths over the past 24 hours. 1,041 of the new cases are from the Thai prison system. Thailand has now reached half a million reported Covid infections since the start of 2020. Just 4 months ago, when the so-called 3rd wave kicked off, there were 1,247 patients in…
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Thai Red Cross order of 5 million Moderna vaccines in process
The Thai Red Cross Society received notice from Zuellig Pharma, the company that distributes the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine, for a 5 million vaccine order to be shipped next year. The Red Cross already has a confirmed order of 1 million vaccines they intend to distribute for free and are scheduled to arrive in the fourth quarter of 2020. The letter…
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Covid-19 train sends 1,490 infected from Bangkok to hometowns
Usually people are excited to head to the train station and pick up their friends, family, or other loved ones returning from the big city back to their hometowns. But for a special train journey tomorrow, this may not be the case. A train travelling from Bangkok to Northeastern provinces including Ubon Ratchathani tomorrow will be carrying 40 people who…
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Covid-19 Poll: People trust doctors, social media, 85% confused.
A new poll shows that Thai people trust doctors for Covid-19 information, but nearly half also trust social media, while nearly 85% find the onslaught of information available at least somewhat confusing. The new Suan Dusit Poll was conducted by Suan Dusit Rajabhat University between July 19 and 22 with 1,691 people responding online. Those surveyed were allowed to choose…
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Covid outbreak closes Nakhon Si Thammarat rubberwood processing factory
A rubberwood processing factory in Nakhon Si Thammarat, a southern Thai province, has been ordered closed for 14 days (reopening on August 7) following 221 workers testing positive for Covid, says the provincial communicable disease committee, today. The majority of the cases, 166, were reported today. All of the workers will be tested, soon. The committee says 2 field hospitals…
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New Covid-19 infections drop, still worrisome for Phuket Sandbox
Following a concerning spike in Covid-19 cases this weekend, the Phuket Provincial Public Health Office reported that cases dropped today to 11, still worrisomely high. Of the 11 new infections, one was from a Phuket Sandbox international traveller, bringing the total number of Sandboxers infected to 22. The 11 new Covid-19 infections push Phuket past the 900 mark with a…
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Samut Sakhon Governor Veerasak offers to resign if communication in his province doesn’t improve
Veerasak Vichitsangsri, the governor of central Thai province Samut Sakhon, has offered to resign if Samut Sakhon officials are unable to contact Covid patients who are in community isolation facilities/pre-admission centres within 24 hours of the patients requesting to be transferred to hospitals for medical attention. Yesterday, on the “COVID-19 Samut Sakhon ” Facebook page, the governor confessed that communication…
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