Vietnam extends quarantine for overseas arrivals to 21 days

Just the thought of 14 days in isolation has driven away many prospective tourists. Imagine 21 days in quarantine. If you want to travel to Vietnam, you’ll now have to go through the 3 week quarantine upon entering the country, Vietnam’s Minister of Health Nguyễn Thanh Long announced yesterday.

The country of 96 million people has kept cases low at just 3,000 confirmed infections and 35 Covid-related deaths since the start of the pandemic last year.

The move to extend the mandatory quarantine period from 14 days to 21 days comes after Vietnamese health officials reported some positive Covid-19 cases that were detected after the patients had completed the 14 day quarantine. Last month, a Vietnamese national had returned home from Japan and tested positive for Covid-19 after he was released from the 14 day quarantine. Reports say that case caused a cluster of infections in the northern province Hà Nam.

National Hospital for Tropical Diseases in Hanoi, a top hospital in Vietnam that has treated many Covid-patients, went into lockdown after a doctor, and later 14 others, tested positive for the coronavirus. The health minister then made the announcement to extend the quarantine period.

“The Ministry of Health has decided to extend the period of mandatory quarantine for people who have made close contact with COVID-19 patients and people who have entered Vietnam.”

SOURCES: Nation Thailand | CNA