covid19

  • Bangkok NewsBangkok Covid-19 vaccination centre to close for 7 days during New Year holiday

    Bangkok Covid-19 vaccination centre to close for 7 days during New Year holiday

    One of Bangkok’s vaccination centres will be closed for a week during the New Year holiday from December 29 to January 4. Thais and foreign residents can still get vaccinated during those days at one of the six health clinics or 11 recognised hospitals, according to Bangkok Metropolitan Administration Health Department’s director. The Thai-Japanese Youth Centre will reopen on January…

  • World NewsVietnam tightens border restrictions with Cambodia over Omicron fear

    Vietnam tightens border restrictions with Cambodia over Omicron fear

    More than ever, Vietnam has tightened security and patrols along the 133 kilometre border with Cambodia in the Mekong Delta provinces due to fear of the new Covid-19 variant Omicron starting today. Along with the 12 border guard posts, 36 checkpoints, six mobile patrol teams, four working groups, and three mobile working groups were ordered to reinforce pandemic control, according…

  • World NewsItaly bars tourists from Singapore until late-January over Covid risk

    Italy bars tourists from Singapore until late-January over Covid risk

    Singaporeans can no longer travel to Italy for sightseeing starting today as the Italian embassy in Singapore has added Singapore and Brunei to a list of nations with a greater risk of Covid-19 infections. Travellers from both nations are now only permitted to enter Italy for job, health, or study purposes, or to return home in an emergency. Certain exemptions…

  • World NewsMyanmar to collaborate with China to produce Covid-19 vaccines

    Myanmar to collaborate with China to produce Covid-19 vaccines

    The Myanmar military junta and coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing says he is working with China to produce a Covid-19 vaccine domestically in January with a goal of manufacturing five million units per month, according to state media television. Although the Omicron virus has not yet been detected in the country, he claimed to be taking further steps…

  • World NewsCambodia, Phillippines report first cases of Omicron Covid-19 variant

    Cambodia, Phillippines report first cases of Omicron Covid-19 variant

    Omicron appears to be quickly making its way into Southeast Asia, as the Philippines and Cambodia both reported the first cases of the new variant on the same day. The Philippine Department of Health said today that it has detected the country’s first two imported cases of the Omicron virus strain following the 48 samples sequenced yesterday. Those two patients…

  • Central Thailand NewsTwo women arrested for allegedly running unauthorized Covid-19 laboratory

    Two women arrested for allegedly running unauthorized Covid-19 laboratory

    Two women were arrested for allegedly issuing unauthorised Covid-19 certifications when police raided the D Lab Inter Group clinic in Muang district of Pathum Thani province on Monday. According to the head of the Consumer Protection Police Division, Pol Maj Gen Anant Nanasombat, two women who identified themselves as Wasita and Pornnapa were reportedly charging 500 baht for each Covid-19…

  • World NewsPhilippines to ban France visitors from December 13 due to Omicron

    Philippines to ban France visitors from December 13 due to Omicron

    Starting from December 13 onwards, tourists with a two-week travelling history in France will be barred from entering the Philippines, according to the acting presidential spokesperson, Karlo Nograles, yesterday, amidst fear of the new variant, Omicron. France has been added to the Philippines’ “Red List” of countries after over 20 cases of the Omicron were discovered in the European nation,…

  • World NewsLaos to reopen to fully vaccinated international tourists in 2022

    Laos to reopen to fully vaccinated international tourists in 2022

    Laos’s Tourism Ministry yesterday said the government and private sectors are working together to reopen Laos to fully vaccinated tourists in 2022, with specifics on quarantine upon arrival still being discussed. Following the rules outlined by the Prime Minister’s Office last month, the ministry is also encouraging officials to prepare for the return of international tourists. Further information from the…

  • Thailand NewsTourism minister tells the public “not to worry” about Omicron

    Tourism minister tells the public “not to worry” about Omicron

    Don’t worry… Thailand’s Tourism and Sports Minister says everything is under control (as the government always says) and Omicron has not been detected in the country. Minister Phiphat Ratchakit Prakarn says the Public Health Ministry is keeping track of all tourists from high-risk countries, including the 330 tourists from eight African countries with a high risk of Omicron variant. The…

  • World NewsMalaysia reports first case of Omicron variant

    Malaysia reports first case of Omicron variant

    Every nation’s fear finally arrives in Malaysia, as its health minister today announced that a foreign student in her quarantine after arriving from South Africa two weeks ago had tested positive for the Omicron coronavirus. Following the World Health Organisation’s announcement on November 24 that Omicron was causing a variety of concerns, authorities re-tested earlier positive samples, according to minister…

  • World NewsTaiwan sets up nighttime vaccination spots with gifting plans

    Taiwan sets up nighttime vaccination spots with gifting plans

    In an effort to enhance the Covid-19 vaccine coverage, a number of hospitals in Taiwan have started giving evening appointments yesterday, and the Central Epidemic Command Centre, or CECC, is considering setting up vaccine booths at PX Mart supermarkets. At a news conference held yesterday, CECC spokesperson Chuang Jen-hsiang said that hospitals established by Taiwan’s Armed Forces, Ministry of Health…

  • World News5 Omicron cases reported in South Korea

    5 Omicron cases reported in South Korea

    South Korea reported its first five cases of the new “Omicron” virus on Wednesday amongst its 5,000 in a single day as infection rates soared for the first time, raising concerns about a sudden spike. The new variant was followed by a fully vaccinated couple who came back from Nigeria last week and was promptly transmitted to two family members…

  • Covid-19 NewsPfizer CEO says new version of vaccine under development to target Omicron

    Pfizer CEO says new version of vaccine under development to target Omicron

    Pfizer has reportedly begun developing a new version to combat the Omicron and the tests have been running since last Friday, according to CEO Albery Bourla yesterday, following the warning from the World Health Organisation on the new variant. While Bourla says he doesn’t “believe the immunisations will fail to protect,” he says a study could the study could reveal that…

  • World NewsTaiwanese co-pilot pays off NT0,000 fine for breaching quarantine rules

    Taiwanese co-pilot pays off NT$800,000 fine for breaching quarantine rules

    According to the Taipei branch of the Administrative Enforcement Agency (AEA), a co-pilot of a Taiwanese airline has paid off a punishment of NT$ 800,000 (US$ 28,551) for breaching of Covid-19 quarantine rules earlier this year. The co-pilot, identified in the media as Chung, was found to have left his home three times to visit friends and buy food while…

  • China NewsShanghai halts 500 flights, issues closure order after 3 three local Covid cases

    Shanghai halts 500 flights, issues closure order after 3 three local Covid cases

    After three locally-transmitted Covid-19 cases were reported in Shanghai on Friday, hundreds of flights were cancelled, schools were closed, and tourists activities were shut down. The three positive cases, according to a municipal government statement, were friends from the nearby city of Suzhou who attended an old architecture lecture last week. The three friends had close contact with nearly 200…

  • World NewsTwo South African travellers test positive for Omicron at Singapore airport

    Two South African travellers test positive for Omicron at Singapore airport

    Singapore’s health ministry says two South African travellers tested positive for the new Covid-19 variant “Omicron” transit at Changi Airport on their way to Australia yesterday. Contact tracing has begun for airport personnel who may have come into contact with two travellers. According to the ministry, the two residents of Johannesburg with pre-departure negative tests before boarding a Singapore Airlines…

  • Covid-19 NewsUPDATE: What we know about “Omicron,” new travel restrictions to Thailand

    UPDATE: What we know about “Omicron,” new travel restrictions to Thailand

    An increasing number of countries are taking precautionary steps to halt international flights. There are already many travel bans from several southern African nations following the discovery of a newly identified Covid-19 variant called “Omicron”. Is Omicron in Thailand? The Omicron Covid-19 variant has not been detected in Thailand, according to the director-general of the Department of Disease Control, assuring…

  • Covid-19 NewsOmicron Covid-19 variant isn’t in Thailand, DDC director says

    Omicron Covid-19 variant isn’t in Thailand, DDC director says

    The Omicron Covid-19 variant isn’t in Thailand, director-general of the Department of Disease Control said yesterday, assuring the public that the mutated strain of the virus virus is not “travelling” into the country by tourists. Dr Opas Karnkawinpong said that all “sandbox” visitors are being closely and stringently monitored by health authorities. “All 1,007 travellers from South Africa who recently…

  • World NewsDesperate to hire nurses, hospitals and clinics in Singapore offer “finder’s fee”

    Desperate to hire nurses, hospitals and clinics in Singapore offer “finder’s fee”

    As the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the healthcare system in Singapore, the demand for nurses grows even as many have quit their jobs due to higher levels of stress and long hours duty to deal with the patients. For the first time in more than two decades, the number of nurses working in Singapore decreased in 2020 and the situation…

  • World NewsPhilippines prepares for reopening as quarantine lifted for 44 countries

    Philippines prepares for reopening as quarantine lifted for 44 countries

    Following the headline on Tuesday that the Philippines is waiving quarantine requirements for fully vaccinated visitors from 44 “green list” countries, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) is reportedly gearing up for the eventual reopening of Philippine borders to international tourists, despite a steady decline in Covid-19 cases in the country. According to the Manila Times, the Immigration Commissioner Jaime Morente…

  • Covid-19 NewsBlackpink’s Lisa tests positive for Covid-19

    Blackpink’s Lisa tests positive for Covid-19

    A Thai-born Lisa Manoban of the K-pop girl group “Blackpink” has been diagnosed with Covid-19, according to reports. A South Korean news outlet Daum said Lisa was diagnosed with the coronavirus today, and her management YG Entertainment was awaiting the results of RT-CPR tests performed on three other members of the group. BLACKPINK YG Thailand, a Facebook page founded by…

  • World NewsNew Zealand sets to reopen to tourists from April 30, 2022

    New Zealand sets to reopen to tourists from April 30, 2022

    International travellers who have been fully vaccinated will be able to enter New Zealand starting April 30, 2022, with the reopening to be phased in over time, according to Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins, after two years of border shut down since March 2020. Fully vaccinated residents and Australians with a residence visa can travel to New Zealand starting January…

  • Thailand NewsForeign Minister says several European nations open to donating vaccines to Thailand

    Foreign Minister says several European nations open to donating vaccines to Thailand

    Thailand’s Foreign Minister told the press today at Government House before entering the weekly cabinet meeting that several countries in Europe are willing to donate Covid-19 vaccines to the kingdom. Minister Don Pramudwinai, who is also the Deputy PM, did not mention the list of EU countries that wants to “give away” the vaccines. He said the Health Ministry of…

  • World NewsSingapore’s travel pass site went down as applications for Malaysians open

    Singapore’s travel pass site went down as applications for Malaysians open

    The SafeTravel website of Singapore, which allows foreign visitors to apply for a vaccination travel pass before entering, was down for several hours yesterday, which was the first day people from Malaysia could apply. Around noon, the website had a message that said “it was undergoing regular maintenance.” It was then restored around 3pm, but a text box recommended customers to…

  • World NewsSingapore-Malaysia Vaccinated Travel Lane starts Monday, 6 airlines offer flights

    Singapore-Malaysia Vaccinated Travel Lane starts Monday, 6 airlines offer flights

    With Singapore and Malaysia’s so-called “Vaccinated Travel Lane” launching Monday, allowing quarantine-free travel for those going to and from the two countries, six airlines will offer flights under the scheme. AirAsia, Jetstar Asia, Malaysia Airlines, Malindo Air, Scoot, and Singapore Airlines are set to fly between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur under VTL programme, starting Monday, according to the Civil Aviation…

  • Thailand NewsCustomers are welcomed back by the OneSiam Group

    Customers are welcomed back by the OneSiam Group

    PRESS RELEASE Siam Paragon, Siam Center, Siam Discovery and ICONSIAM are now open under strict preventive pandemic control measures for utmost customer confidence, 100% of staff must be vaccinated and tested negative with Antigen Rapid Test (ATK) With restrictions easing in “dark red” zones, OneSiam group’s shopping malls are ready to resume their operations, adhering to the Centre for COVID-19…

  • Covid-19 NewsOfficials say employees are to resume work, compensated accordingly following ease on restrictions

    Officials say employees are to resume work, compensated accordingly following ease on restrictions

    With restrictions easing in “dark red” zones tomorrow, the Department of Labour Protection and Welfare has declared that employees can go back to work with their normal compensation, according to Thai media sources. The department has declared that employers are required to summon all employees back to work and pay them accordingly. If employees are not paid their wages, their…

  • Thailand NewsField hospital raided after reports of Covid patients doing drugs, having group sex

    Field hospital raided after reports of Covid patients doing drugs, having group sex

    Police raided a field hospital in central Thailand after reports that the Covid-19 patients were doing drugs and having orgies. A staff member at the field hospital in Samut Prakan, just southwest of Bangkok, told police the patients engaging in group sex and getting into fights where some patients were injured. Officers from the Internal Security Operations Command dressed in…

  • Thailand NewsMan arrested for allegedly robbing 7-Eleven stores in Bangkok to pay off gambling debt

    Man arrested for allegedly robbing 7-Eleven stores in Bangkok to pay off gambling debt

    A man was arrested for allegedly robbing 7-Eleven stores in Bangkok because he needed to pay off the debts from the money he had lost from gambling. He apparently painted his face to hide his identity and used a pocket knife to threaten the cashiers. The 30 year old man, identified as Sugipri, allegedly robbed two of the 7-Eleven convenience…

  • Thailand NewsField hospital set up in Phuket Rajabhat University for Covid-19 patients

    Field hospital set up in Phuket Rajabhat University for Covid-19 patients

    A second field hospital was set up at the Phuket Rajabhat University campus north of Phuket Town to accommodate and monitor the Covid-19 patients in the “green group,” which refers to Covid-19 patients that have mild symptoms to no symptoms. The patients’ symptoms will constantly be will be monitored and observed under the care system of Vachira Phuket hospital as…