Coronavirus (Covid-19)
Patong, Phuket Town, Chalong to fund residents’ vaccination
Patong and Phuket Town are planning to fund registered residents’ Covid-19 vaccines, Thai and foreign, with the hope to speed up the inoculation process without waiting for the national government. The mayors of both cities say they have already allocated the funds to move forward with purchasing the vaccines after the government approves which ones may be used.
Like any other municipality in Thailand, the Covid-19 vaccine must be acquired from the Ministry of Public Health. A spokesperson says their office had yet to receive the news on how many doses of the vaccine Phuket could receive or in which order to vaccinate people.
“I don’t want to wait in the queue to get the vaccine budget. Chalong people deserve to receive vaccines. They do not need to pay.”
Chalong officials have confirmed that the Covid vaccines will be freely available to all people registered as living in Chalong Subdistrict, regardless whether the resident is Thai or foreign.
“There are about 20,000 to 30,000 people in Chalong. This includes everyone: Thais, migrant workers and other foreigners registered as living in Chalong, such as retirees and foreigners staying here for other reasons. They will all receive the vaccine.”
Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupana has also confirmed to The Phuket News that Phuket City Municipality will also administer free vaccines to the over 79,000 people living in Phuket Town. But he says only people who were registered as living in the city limits at the end of December would be eligible to receive the free vaccines. Chalermluck Kebsup, Mayor of Patong, is also following suit by offering free vaccines to registered residents.
“We deserve to get the vaccine quickly because Phuket is a tourism province, our people depend on tourism.”
It has been 26 days since Phuket had any positive cases of Covid-19, but Chalermluck says a vaccine will curb worries of Covid spreading.
“The vaccine is our hope in stopping this fear. If local residents receive the vaccine as quickly as possible, I think people will be more confident in receiving domestic tourists. Then businesses can run.”
SOURCE: The Phuket News
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The mandatory quarantine period for those who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus will be reduced from 14 days to 7 days, Thailand’s Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirankul said in a press conference. Those who have not been vaccinated, but have a medical certificate declaring that they are Covid-free, will be required to quarantine to 10 days, Anutin said, according to Reuters.
The health minister says vaccinations must be administered within 3 months of travelling to Thailand. Travellers must still show negative Covid-19 test results issued within 72 hours of their departure to Thailand. Those travelling from Africa must still quarantine for 14 days due to concerns about new variants of the coronavirus.
SOURCE: Reuters
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71 new Covid-19 cases were reported today in the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration’s daily briefing. There are currently 579 active cases. Since the start of the pandemic last year, the CCSA has reported a total of 26,441 coronavirus cases in Thailand and 85 deaths.
“The numbers are getting better,” according to deputy spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Natapanu Nopakun, who gives the CCSA report in English. The daily active case count has remained between 500 to 600 cases for the past week, a much lower average than last month when mass testing campaigns were actively rolled out in high risk areas to help trace and contain the virus.
Out of the 71 cases, 41 were detected in hospitals, primarily in Samut Sakhon. 7 cases were detected in active case finding, including 6 in Samut Sakhon and 1 in Pathum Thani. The other 23 cases were detected in quarantine for those travelling to Thailand from overseas.
Recently, 2 beauty pageant contestants tested positive for Covid-19 while in quarantine after arriving in Thailand from overseas. Women from 63 countries travelled to Thailand to participate in a beauty pageant scheduled for later this month. Natapanu praised the health care workers for their effectiveness at detecting the virus at an early stage.
Over the weekend, the CCSA reported 65 new cases yesterday and 64 new cases on Saturday.
Daily active Covid-19 cases in Thailand as of 7 March 2021, according to Worldometers.
SOURCE: CCSA
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Hotels in the northern province of Chiang Mai have been forced to cut their rates by up to 90%, in a desperate bid to attract more domestic tourists. According to a Bangkok Post report, La-Iad Bungsrithong, from the northern chapter of the Thai Hotels Association, says with tourists mainly favouring the southern beach destinations this month, hotel operators in the north of the country are preparing for the forthcoming low season.
The resurgence of Covid-19 late last year meant that in December, only 1,000 Chiang Mai hotels, offering between 20,000 and 30,000 rooms, stayed open. This month, occupancy rates have plummeted to less than 3% and are not expected to rise beyond 5% during the Songkran holiday next month.
La-Iad says traditional target markets such as China are currently off-limits due to the Chinese government placing restrictions on citizens travelling out of the country.
“Even though vaccine distribution has started globally, the target markets for Chiang Mai such as China still cannot take outbound trips. Operators have to rely on the domestic market for the whole year.”
She adds that the Rati Lanna Riverside Spa Resort, of which she is general manager, has cut room rates to 1,500 baht a night, compared to the normal rate of 13,000 baht prior to the pandemic.
Hotels are also being forced to explore new ways of making money, with around 30 hotels – all 4 and 5 star properties – now offering a “drive-thru” food service. La-Iad says hotel operators are also calling on the Chiang Mai office of the Tourism Authority of Thailand to provide visitors to the province with a 500 baht coupon to be redeemed in hotel eateries. She says the authority also needs to do more to promote inter-provincial travel, in particular from the south and north-east of the country.
In 2019, Chiang Mai welcomed 11 million tourists, with 70% of them being Thai. By contrast, there were only 1 million in 2020. This year’s number is expected to be around 25% of the 2019 figure.
SOURCE: Bangkok Post
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Peter
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 10:51 am
Apparently AZ have not signed the production agreement with Thailand. Was meant to happen yesterday but didn’t.
Thailand is becoming a shambolic laughing stock over this. Now Phuket and Pattaya are talking about going it alone.
UK nearly 5 million jabs total and yesterday was 400,000 alone.
As long as vaccine supplies hold up, UK constantly in top 5 vaccinated per head of population worldwide.
They think the new variant is more deadly than the original.
Vaccination is the only route out of this.
Crossing your fingers, not testing and hoping for the best is not a solution.
harry1
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 1:10 pm
oxford vaccine has a production line up and running in india as supposedly be supplying asia ? as the suppliers rightly stated,it be made available to the public as a non profitable supply only
Issan John
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 2:27 pm
Untrue.
The National Vaccine Institute director Nakorn Premsri, Disease Control Department director-general Opas Kankawinphong and AstraZeneca Thailand president James Teak signed the agreement two months ago, on 27 November.
Toby Andrews
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 3:28 pm
Yes but just for supply and not for production. Read Bangkok post 27 November.
So all this reporting you have been posting of Thailand producing the AZ virus is WRONG, and Peter is right.
Issan John
Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 1:23 pm
From the Bangkok Post:
“Thailand signed an agreement on Nov 27, 2020 with Oxford-AstraZeneca securing the country access to the company’s Covid-19 vaccine and authorising the right for a local manufacturer to produce it.”
What part of that don’t you understand?
Andy W
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 11:07 am
Wow, a Thai official that isn’t racist against farangs.. Not many of those around. Although it could just be that he’s using common sense over trying to instill tourist confidence. Again, not many Thai officials who use common sense, so ?
Stuart
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 11:12 am
A very laudable plan. However where are they going to get the vaccines from? Thailand will have none available for anyone to buy for months yet. As a country they are towards the bottom of the list to be supplied. Sad but true.. this rubbish about making the AZ vaccine, that’s not even on the horizon yet, in the real world I mean, not Thai PR.
RA
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 11:21 am
Let me be the first to praise this move by local municipalities to plan free vaccinations for Phuket’s Thais and foreigners.
Svcoquette
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 11:40 am
Will foreigners, like us, who came here on tourist VISA s but are now stuck here be able to get the vaccine?
Daniel Wom
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 12:33 pm
no. if you could read properly, you would know that its only for residents, not tourists. you need a certificate of residence for that
Issan John
Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 1:24 pm
Wrong.
Svcoquette
Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 4:15 pm
Daniel Wom, I can read just fine, thank you. It would make sense that tourists who have stuck here for almost 12 months supporting the local economy more than most “residents” should be givin some consideration, even if we have to pay for it.
Issan John
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 2:29 pm
Free. no. For purchase, when available, yes.
Svcoquette
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 2:56 pm
No problem, we don’t mind paying for it.
EdwardV
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 12:02 pm
If Phuket and Patong have to buy the vaccine from the ministry of health. It’s also likely the vaccine will be in limited supply probably the entire year. Isn’t this going to keep someone else in Thailand from getting inoculated this year? Isn’t it a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul????
Issan John
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 2:39 pm
Possibly not.
As has been said, it’s not likely to be available commercially until after the technically vulnerable and care workers (and the Health Minister) have been inoculated, so a cynic might say it’s nothing more than a token gesture to win popularity as it’s unlikely to ever happen and those making it already know that.
J West
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 12:53 pm
The mystery of “ How are travelers getting on a plane Covid free and arriving Covid positive” is slowly becoming clear…. huge numbers of travelers are faking the Covid certificates.
I read about this in The Guardian months ago when it came to light that unscrupulous travel agents were selling fake docs for a price. It should have been dealt with long ago. Instead any number of a-holes continue to spread the disease. Why isn’t a Q Code being used to verify the dates?
https://nypost.com/2021/01/22/these-travelers-faked-negative-covid-tests-got-away-with-it/
Seriously, anyone doing this should be shunted into a dark cell for a minimum two years.
Peter
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 2:20 pm
To be fair their seems to be some dispute about AZ and Thailand falling out on production.
What is not in dispute is the slowness of Thailand’s vaccine roll out.
Issan John
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 2:47 pm
Which few Thais seem upset about …
… maybe because they’re not as desperate to be vaccinated as the UK, since they haven’t stuffed up so badly making it the best worst option – if it works as it’s hoped, as it’s currently being rolled out, which all the available evidence now indicates it won’t.
Crispy
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 8:40 pm
Stuff and nonsense isaan John.
All thais are desperate for the vaccine as it opens the door to a revival of the economy.
No vaccine, no economy,no work.
Issan John
Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 1:30 pm
… and the signs of desperation are what, exactly?
Mass protests?
Mini protests?
Any protests?
Toby Andrews
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 10:22 pm
Well if it is being produced in Indian, why let the Thai produce it?
Chances are from past experience of Thais, they will be turning out vials of water and selling the real vaccines to private hospitals.
Issan John
Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 1:28 pm
For the same reason other countries are also allowed to produce it under licence – money.
Do you think KFC, Starbucks and McD became money makers by sticking to one shop?
Crispy
Saturday, January 23, 2021 at 10:36 pm
It amazes me that provinces get so fed up waiting, they decide to try and go it alone with the vaccine.
The vaccine gets your immune system ready so should you encounter the virus you have a much better chance of overcoming it. It reduces the symptoms, hopefully to zero.
You may still be carrying some virus so in theory could infect others. But chances are vanishingly small. There’s not enough data yet to answer this, nor how long immunity lasts, but the UK has been vaccinating since 8 December 2020 and six million people almost have had the jab.
My guess is immunity lasts at least five months, because that is what they’ve found with immunity after fighting off a real virus attack.
And of course, no long covid with the vaccine. Long covid puts 30% of those hospitalised, back in hospital within five months and kills an eighth.
The lesson as I see it is to get on and vaccinate all residents and once you get to 70%, you can consider the threat over, herd immunity reigns, and can then re-open the economy.
But! Attention mutant strains!! Even when your own people are vaccinated, be strict with new entrants by insisting on proof of their own vaccination and a PCR test or equivalent.
Once the vaccination program is up and rolling, next steps are to get the workforce ready for work and to upgrade the infrastructure, especially the tourist infrastructure. Everyone’s dying to go on holiday, but the competition is rude :
Top holiday destinations for 2021:
1. Maldives
2. Mexico
3. Thailand
4. Turkey
5. Spain
6. USA
7. Malta
8. Portugal
9. Mauritius
10. South Africa.
Not to mention your neighbours, especially Vietnam.
Now, all this takes enormous sums of money. Care on how it is raised as – believe your creditors – it must be repaid if you are to survive as a sovereign state.
There are no short-cuts, no point in trying to be clever or partisan, just get on down and dedicate yourself to the welfare of the people, hi-so, low-so, not-so, north, south, central, everyone included please. It’s for your own good.
Good luck everyone! See you all soon my friends!!!
Issan John
Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 1:35 pm
They’re not going it alone, Crispy – it’s a vote winner, little else.
… and while I agree with your sentiments, BTW Vietnam’s closed for the year.
Alavan
Wednesday, January 27, 2021 at 11:37 pm
For Sri Lanka you have to quarantaine in a designated hotel… But you may leave your room and use tha garden, swimming pool and gym. And even the close vicinity of the hotel.
That is better than staying 5 days in your room and then more than a week being allowed to to to the swimming pool for one hour.