CCSA English briefing on Wednesday, 20th October 2021 (Unofficial translation). Richard Barrow/CCSA

 CCSA English briefing on Wednesday, 20th October 2021
(Unofficial translation)

1. Vaccination Progress

- Yesterday, Thailand administered 994,781 doses of vaccines, increasing the accumulated number of vaccinations to over 67.5 million doses (67,587,102 doses).
- The number of people in all provinces who received their second dose is rising, especially vulnerable groups, such as people aged 60 and over. In Bangkok, more than 70% of the population have already received two doses of vaccines.

2. Daily Statistics

- For today's statistics, there are 8,918 new confirmed cases and 103,507 active cases, of which 2,728 are in critical condition and 619 are on ventilators.
- There are 10,878 new recoveries and 79 fatalities today. The number of fatalities continues to be less than one hundred.

3. Overall Situation

- Bangkok still has the highest number of cases, followed by Yala, Pattani, Songkhla, and Samut Prakarn.
- Clusters continue to be found in construction camps, workers' campsites, factories, markets, social gatherings at eateries, office spaces, prisons, crowded communities, fishing boats, and school grounds or locations.

4. Preparations for the Country's Reopening

- There are many key factors that are being considered by officials for the country's reopening on 1st November, including - on the health side - the Covid-19 situation, the capacity of the public health system to control the pandemic and treat patients, and the vaccination rate in the provinces set for reopening; the local economic situation, in particular the tourism sector and related businesses, as well as; coherence with the reopening plans in other countries and compatibility of international travel regulations.
- As of now, there are two existing channels for entry that are being implemented and these channels will transition into the reopening of the country.
- First, Thai and foreign nationals who have not been fully vaccinated may enter Thailand, but will have to undergo mandatory quarantine in the Alternative Quarantine (AQ) system.
- Second, fully vaccinated Thai and foreign nationals may enter Thailand via the sandbox scheme, which currently includes four provinces and will be expanded to cover 17 provinces on 1st November.
- The upcoming new channel to launch Thailand's reopening on 1st November is for fully vaccinated travelers from a list of countries to enter Thailand with no quarantine. Relevant agencies are now considering this list and CCSA will inform you as soon as the list has been finalized.

5. Bangkok's Measures for Reopening

- One example of preparations for the country's reopening is from the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA)'s guidelines, which includes four main concepts:
(1) Protect – This means administering vaccines to everyone in the province, early diagnosis, treatment, and isolation for confirmed cases, and preparedness of health services.
(2) Prevent – This refers to sentinel surveillance, practicing universal prevention, regular ATK testing, bubble and seal measures for factories, the creation of Covid-free settings and Covid-free areas.
(3) Promote – This means educating people on smart living and life during Covid-19
(4) Contain/Control – This refers to efforts to contain the spread of Covid-19 by locking down specific areas with high rates of local transmissions as necessary, building people's immunity with vaccination and developing the quarantine system.

6. Vaccine Donation from Hungary

- Yesterday, the Ambassador-Designate of Hungary handed over 400,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to the Deputy Director-General of the Department of Disease Control to administer to people in Thailand regardless of nationality.

7. Certificates of Entry (COEs) and the new Thailand Pass system

- International visitors may still register for COEs before the new "Thailand Pass" system becomes operational on 1st November and all COEs that have been issued will remain valid after 1st November.

Full CCSA English briefing can be viewed here >>> https://th-th.facebook.com/thailandprd/videos/2924273217902531/

Source: CCSA, Ministry of Public Health, and Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs