Officials considering Sandbox destinations in every region – Health Minister

Petch PetpailinWednesday, January 19, 2022Last Updated: Wednesday, January 19, 2022

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Officials considering Sandbox destinations in every region – Health Minister

Along with pushing for the resumption of the Test & Go scheme, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul says the ministry is discussing adding more Sandbox destinations to have the entry scheme open in every region of Thailand. The ministry will make formal proposals, including lowering the Covid-19 alert level to level 3, at the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration general meeting on Thursday.

The health minister suggested Sandbox schemes in Chiang Mai, Chon Buri, Khon Kaen, and Samut Prakan. At the moment, Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga, and the islands in Surat Thani are the only destinations currently allowed to welcome tourists under the Sandbox scheme.

The Sandbox scheme allows vaccinated travellers to roam freely at a specified destination rather than undergoing a strict quarantine at a hotel or facility. Travellers must stay at an approved hotel or resort for at least seven days and test negative for Covid-19 on arrival and again before the end of the week.

Proposals will be discussed at Thursday’s CCSA meeting chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha. For the reopening of pubs, bars, and entertainment venues, Anutin says the ministry will not propose the reopening as there have been many infection clusters reported at the venues and they still pose a risk for transmission

SOURCE: Khaosod

Petch Petpailin

Petpailin, or Petch, is a Thai translator and writer for The Thaiger who focuses on translating breakingThai news stories into English. With a background in field journalism, Petch brings several years of experience to the English News desk at The Thaiger. Before joining The Thaiger, Petch worked as a content writer for several known blogging sites in Bangkok, including Happio and The Smart Local. Her articles have been syndicated by many big publishers in Thailand and internationally, including the Daily Mail, The Sun and the Bangkok Post. She is a news writer who stops reading news on the weekends to spend more time cafe hopping and petting dwarf shrimp! But during office hours, you can find Petch on LinkedIn and you can reach her by email at petch@thethaiger.com.