Thailand to buy another 35m doses of COVID-19 vaccine from other companies
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Thailand will procure an additional 35 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines from other 2 or 3 companies, on top of the 65 million from Sinovac and AstraZeneca, according to a post on Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's Facebook on Wednesday morning.
The decision to buy the additional doses was reached at a meeting of the working committee, tasked with procuring COVID-19 vaccines.
Chaired by former public health minister Dr. Piyasakol Sakolsatayadorn, the committee comprises representatives from the Public Health Ministry, the Government Pharmaceutical Organization, the Food and Drugs Administration and the Association of Private Hospitals.
Of the 35 million doses to be purchased, the prime minister said that the private sector, led by the Board of Trade of Thailand, has offered to ease the government's financial burden by funding the purchase of between 10 and 15 million doses, for employees of private companies.
He also said that officialshave been instructed to distribute all the available vaccine doses, so that they can be administered by the end of this year.
When to get a COVID test and what to do if you test positive
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With the number of COVID-19 cases in Thailand rising on a daily basis, many people are worrying about whether they have contracted the contagious virus. In fact, even simple cold symptoms can be scary.
While health authorities are encouraging people at risk of catching COVID-19 to get tested, they are also trying to allay fears by providing more information on exactly who is at risk.
High risk vs low risk
Disease Control Department director-general Dr Opart Karnkawinpong recently said that anybody who has been within close proximity of a confirmed COVID patient should get tested immediately.
People at highest risk are those who live in the same house as the patient and were in close contact when the patient was developing symptoms; medical workers who handle a patient or their specimen while not wearing protective gear; and patients sharing a room with someone who has tested positive.
Also at high risk are people who have met symptomatic COVID-19 patients and may have been exposed to their body fluids, including via coughing or sneezing.
Standing a meter from a confirmed COVID patient without a mask for more than five minutes or sitting a couple of rows from the patient on an aircraft or bus also carries high risk.
"Being in a badly ventilated room with a patient without a mask for 15 minutes is risky," Opart explained.
Working or studying in the same room as a confirmed patient is less risky provided everybody wears a mask and is not exposed to bodily fluids.
What should those at risk do?
People at high risk are advised to immediately seek a lab test and then quarantine themselves at a medical facility or at their own home. However, they cannot walk free even if the first lab test does not detect the presence of the virus. A negative result on the first day only means that the people they came in contact with before the test are safe. They should keep a mask on at all times and isolate themselves for 14 days. During isolation, they may be required to undergo tests a few more times.
Khanngoen Nuanual, a lead singer of Thaitanium band, for instance, was considered to be at high risk because he performed at The Emerald Thonglor 13 on April 2 where infected patients had been present. Seven days later his test came back negative, yet 15 days later he tested positive.
State hospitals are providing free COVID-19 tests for people who are at risk, though private hospitals are charging a fee. However, the National Health Security Office has started covering the cost of COVID tests at private medical facilities for high-risk cases.
People at low risk are still recommended to isolate themselves for 14 days, during which time they can run their daily errands, provided they stay away from crowded places.
Tested positive?
People who have tested positive for COVID-19 should contact health authorities via hotlines 1330, 1668 or 1669 and have their national ID and test results ready. They must wear a face mask, isolate themselves and avoid leaving home while waiting to be admitted to hospital.
THAILAND: Police have suspended the use of checkpoints to test motorists for drink-driving, citing the need to concentrate on stopping the spread of COVID-19.
The order was signed by deputy police chief Pol Gen Damrongsak Kittiprapas, on behalf of the national police chief, and came into force on Sunday (Apr 18).
It represents a U-turn after police chief Suwat Jangyodsuk issued a directive last month that drink-driving checkpoints should resume operations nationwide from April 1, albeit with strict new guidelines.
The checkpoints were suspended last October, soon after Pol Gen Suwat took office. He promised their operations would be made more transparent.
Pol Gen Damrongsak said the new order applied to all police units and was being issued under the state of emergency to stem the latest surge in infections.
This followed 18 provinces being designated red zone "maximum control areas" and 59 provinces as "control areas".
Police units should instead focus on monitoring mass gatherings and activities deemed to be at high risk of spreading the virus, he said.
The order said checkpoints for alcohol tests and strict enforcement of minor traffic infringements were being suspended, especially in areas of maximum COVID control.
Checkpoints for crime prevention, drug interception and border security could continue to operate but they must not cause the public too much inconvenience, it added.
Police must also stop all social activities being held purely for entertainment purposes. Traditional ceremonies can go ahead but should have adequate disease control measures in place.
Officers must themselves follow disease control measures strictly while on duty, including wearing face masks at all times.
They must have their temperature taken before going out to work, practise social distancing and use the ThaiChana and MorChana apps.
They should also refrain from misconduct, such as heavy drinking and frequenting venues deemed at high-risk of spreading disease, the order said.
FILE PHOTO: Nightlife entertainment venues were responsible for over 6000 Covid-19 infections this month.
As the Covid-19 third wave reaches in Thailand's provinces, the main culprit in the spread of the infectious new strain is entertainment venues such as bars, clubs and pubs. With around 1,000 – 1,500 new daily infections over the past week, 71 provinces throughout the country have traced Covid-19 infections back to clusters in bars and nightclubs.
The CCSA announced yesterday that in April alone a total of 6,020 Coronavirus infections were connected to evening entertainment venues.
They confirmed that 40% of all people diagnosed with Covid-19 in Bangkok this month could be traced back to nightlife locations, a total of 1,583 infections. In the other provinces, entertainment spots were also the source of a quarter of all Covid-19 infections.
Young people make up over half of these third-wave cases, with 3,432 Covid-infected people 20 to 29 years old according to the CCSA. While all of Thailand's 77 provinces now have Covid-19 infections, only 6 provinces don't have any cases traced to these entertainment venues. Just Chai Nat, Narathiwat, Pattani, Ranong, Satun, and Yala are currently free of Coronavirus infections linked to these nightlife clusters.
1,157 patrons along with 364 bar staff and 348 other people thought to be in close proximity to people who were infected with the Coronavirus came forward and were identified and tested from these entertainment venues. But the CCSA says that accounts for only 27% of the infections connected to nightlife locations, while the majority of people did not cooperate and withheld pertinent information, making the identification and containment of the Covid-19 outbreaks from entertainment venues more difficult.
The front cover of the 'vaccine passport' which the government is adopting for those travelling overseas.
The government has announced it will adopt the so-called vaccine passport, a certificate of vaccination, for use with Covid-19 vaccination in Thailand as an official travel document for those already vaccinated against Covid-19 and travelling to other countries.
The Royal Gazette on Tuesday published a copy of the format of the vaccine passport along with an order by the Disease Control Department authorising a number of disease control officials to issue the vaccine passport.
Both the format of the vaccine passport and the order were approved by department director-general Dr Opas Karnkawinpong.
On the cover of the approved vaccine passport format there is Thai-English text that reads "Department of Disease Control, Ministry of Public Health, Thailand", a garuda emblem and more text reading "Covid-19 Certificate of Vaccination".
The name of the vaccination certificate holder and his or her passport or national identification number is typed in English certifying that the certificate holder has already been vaccinated against Covid-19.
Only vaccinations using vaccines registered in Thailand or ones certified by the World Health Organisation will be issued with the vaccine passport, while the signature of an authorised disease control official is required to validate the passport.
The vaccination certificate is intended for an individual holder only, not for group use. Children aged under seven must have their parents' signatures on their vaccine passports, while those who are unable to write are required to give a fingerprint on the passport instead.
Six disease control officials meanwhile are now authorised to sign a vaccine passport when it is issued.
They are Rom Buathong, a senior medical doctor with the department's international communicable disease control checkpoints and quarantine division; Sirirak Thanasakunprasoet, a senior medical doctor with the same division; Rawinan Soma, another senior medical doctor with the same division.
Others are Ranida Techsuwanna, a senior medical doctor with the department's general communicable diseases division; Kamonthip Atsawawaranan, a senior medical doctor with the department's Institute of Urban Disease Control; and Parinda Watthanasi, a senior medical doctor with the department's Institute of Preventive Medicine.
These officials are assigned to work in line with an announcement by the national communicable disease committee regarding the issuing of Covid jab certificates, published in the Royal Gazette on March 31.
The Public Health Ministry will start vaccinating the general public against COVID-19 in phase 2 around mid-May, when the first lot of the locally manufactured AstraZeneca vaccine will be ready.
Public Health Permanent Secretary Dr Kiattiphum Wongrajit said people can register to get the vaccine via four channels: the "MOPH Connect" (Doctors Ready) Line official account; the mobile Mor Phrom application that will be ready for download on May 1 initially on Android phones; at hospital via telephone, or by contacting public health volunteers nationwide.
He said the government aims to have 50-60% of the population vaccinated as soon as possible to effectively control the outbreak, and will also expand the vaccination units by collaborating with the private sector, which will maximize the number of people getting vaccinated per day from the current rate of 500 per day per hospital.
Those who have been vaccinated will receive both a paper and digital certificate (in the form of a QR code), which they can use to verify their vaccinations. The ministry expects vaccine passports for international travel to be ready in June, once the World Health Organization (WHO) finalizes the all-important criteria.
On February 8, Thailand's Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has repeated its commitment to give everyone in the country – including expats and migrant workers – vaccinations against COVID-19. Expats and foreign workers are likely to be vaccinated in phase 3 from June.
Purchases made earlier based on situation at the time, says PM
Nurse Guillermo Monzon holds a vial of Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine in Telde on the island of Gran Canaria, Spain, on March 31. (Reuters photo)
Thailand is waiting for price quotes from US-based Pfizer Inc before the country can buy 5-10 million doses of Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine to be shipped from July to December this year, according to the prime minister.
Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha said on Tuesday the National Vaccine Institute had been in talks to make a purchase and was waiting for the price quotes and conditions from the Manhattan-based company.
"I can't confirm [whether Thailand will get it or not] but if all goes well, 5-10 million doses can be delivered as soon as July. The government is not dragging its feet," he said during a briefing.
He added he had responded to calls, especially from social media users, to buy vaccines from manufacturers other than the two it had already bought — AstraZeneca and CoronaVac by Sinovac Biotech.
The premier explained he had set up a panel to consider "alternative vaccines".
"Initially, the purchases Thailand made were based on the situation at that time, when we were very successful in containing the outbreak," he said, perhaps implying that the government did not realise the importance of vaccinations in a country that received almost 40 million foreign tourists in 2019, the source of about 20% of its gross domestic product.
Back then, the government did not want to put people's lives at risk since some of the available vaccines used untried technology, he said without elaborating.
Now that such vaccines have been successfully used elsewhere, the government allowed the private sector to make proposals and help them buy the shots.
"Let me be clear. It's not that we acted too late or too little. Everything depends on the situation at a given time. We don't want to subject people to risk when the vaccine was first produced. Several countries opted to do the same," Gen Prayut said.
He assured the shots Thailand has now were being administered quickly and thoroughly.
"The idea of monopolising local vaccination has never crossed our mind. All we think about is safety. We can't afford to make the shots freely available because they are for emergency use only and the manufacturers won't be liable for undesirable side effects.
The prime minister said another 500,000 doses of Sinovac Biotech vaccine would likely arrive this weekend and another 1 million were expected in May.
In June, he said, 4-6 million doses of the locally produced AstraZeneca vaccine will be available. More will be shipped in the following months until the total reaches 61 million doses by the end of the year.
To date, the country took delivery of more than 2 million doses. According to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration data, 666,210 shots were administered as of Tuesday.
The AstraZeneca vaccine uses a more traditional viral vector technology — injecting a harmless genetically modified virus to stimulate an antibody. The same technology is used in making the Ebola vaccine.
Sinovac Biotech uses the inactivated virus to cause bodies to produce an immune response. This technology is used in making rabies, hepatitis-A and whooping cough vaccines.
Pfizer uses the messenger RNA (mRNA) technology which has never been used in any licensed vaccines in its Comirnaty Covid vaccine. Part of the virus' genetic code is injected into the body, triggering it to begin making viral proteins, but not the whole virus, which is enough to train the immune system to attack.
BANGKOK (NNT) - New clusters of COVID-19 infection have been linked to entertainment venues in many areas of Thailand. As a precaution, Prime Minister and Defense Minister, Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha, has directed Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, to prepare resources for future outbreaks.
Deputy Minister of Public Health, Dr. Satit Pitutecha, has chaired a meeting of five networks to ensure proper preparations are made, with the Department of Medical Services assigned to manage the number of hospital beds in Bangkok and other areas of the country.
Currently, there are 28,147 hospital beds available for COVID-19 patients in public and private hospitals; some hotels are turning into temporary hospitals known as hospitels, and field hospitals have been constructed. More beds are being added, as the number COVID-19 patients may increase.
As of February 24, Thailand had 10,138 respirators. The country may order more respirators, depending on the situation.
As of April 16, Thailand had 1,657,232 N95 masks in reserve, and more orders have been placed. At the same time, the country had 94,281,550 medical masks and 544,141 personal protective equipment (PPE) suits.
In addition, Thailand is distributing the antiviral drug favipiravir to all areas of the country. As of April 16, the country had 341,200 favipiravir tablets in reserve, with a million more on order. The government also plans to order 1 million more tablets to meet the potential need.
Thailand has 270 COVID-19 testing laboratories, with each lab having the capacity to test around 81,000 samples a day.
Concerning treatment efficiency, the fatality rate of the COVID-19 outbreak in Samut Sakhon province was 0.1 percent, according to data released on February 24.
The current wave of COVID-19 is severe, with most clusters detected in entertainment venues. However, the situation is within the scope of remedial action taken by the government and the Ministry of Public Health. With proper preparation, the ministry is able to adapt to the changing circumstances rapidly, while maintaining effective disease-control measures to protect people's lives.
A survey conducted among people in China has revealed that Chinese tourists want to come back to Thailand.
But the overwhelming majority are waiting for Thailand to vaccinate most of its people before making a decision, reported Manager.
Quarantine would need to end with more than a third saying even then they would wait SIX MONTHS before returning to Thailand.
The survey done online from the Thai China Intelligence Center at the start of April came as Thailand was in the grip of a third wave of Covid-19 infection.
And at a time when less than 1% of the Thai population had been vaccinated. The government has said that most people will need to wait until June at least and jabs at private hospitals are yet to get going.
And quarantine for foreign tourists remains in place at least until July and possibly longer.
The survey indicated that 93% of Chinese people were taking the vaccine rollout into account in their decision to holiday in Thailand.
33% of people said they wanted to see 70% of the Thai population vaxxed before returning, while 28% said half the population would be okay.
77% said they would only come when quarantine was completely ended.
But this was broken down revealing further interesting attitudes:
30% said they would wait between one and three months after the end of quarantine.
28% said they'd wait 4-6 months
and
36% said they wouldn't come to Thailand again until six months or more after the end of quarantine.
Just over half, 51% said they would be holidaying in China for now.
The good news for the Thai tourism industry was that Thailand was number one on the list for places that the Chinese wanted to go to.
55% said Thailand, 24% listed Japan, 11% Singapore, 5% South Korea, 4% Europe and just 1% wanted to go to America.
Within Thailand the places the Chinese wanted to go to most were as follows:
Bangkok 40%
Phuket 34%
Pattaya 12%
Chiang Mai 12%
Koh Samui 3%.
Those questioned were 57% fully independent travellers and 43% who would opt for tour groups.
Pre-pandemic estimates put the percentage of Chinese tourists of the total visitors from abroad to Thailand at about 20%, easily the highest of any nation.
Thaivisa notes that with the biggest tourism market wanting to see vaccination in Thailand, the much criticized slow rollout of jabs will be brought into even sharper focus.
WHO:s nödkommitté vill inte att särskilda vaccinpass införs för internationella resenärer, rapporterar AFP. Det framgår av det protkoll som ställts samman efter kommitténs möte den 15 april.
Beslutet motiveras med att vaccinpass skulle öka ojämlikheten.
EU-länderna enades förra veckan om att införa ett gemensamt vaccinpass som ska börja användas den 26 juni inför turistsäsongen. USA har tidigare meddelat att de inte kommer att kräva vaccinpass för inresande.
The Chonburi Department of Public Health announced 82 new and confirmed cases of Covid-19 this morning in the popular province that includes Pattaya. This reflects a downward trend from the past week overall and the least number of new cases since January 9th.
The districts that cases were found in are as follows: Mueang Chonburi 23, Si Racha 10, Banglamung (Pattaya area) 43, Sattahip 3, and 3 cases from other provinces brought for treatment.
The details for cases located in the past 24 hours are as follows:
1 person infected with COVID-19 from a cluster at the Flintstones Pub in Mueang Chonburi in the Don Hualor sub-district. (Since April 6th, 2021, a total of 152 cases from this venue)
People infected with COVID-19 From other entertainment venues: 2.1 Cetus club pattaya 3 cases 2.2 808 Club Pattaya 2 cases 2.3 Top one pub 1 person 2.4 Bone Pattaya 1 person 2.5 Queen Club 1 person 2.6 Version pub 1 person 2.7 Pin up go-go 2 people 2.8 Happy Wet Bar 1 person 2.9 Friend Zone, Rayong Province: 1 person
1 medical personnel
49 people in close contact and family members of previous COVID-19 patients
18 cases are being investigated.
In the past day, a total of 252 close contacts were tested, and 344 more proactive ones were searched for Covid-19. All are waiting for their test results and are currently in isolation.
Authorities are asking for residents to work from home if possible, avoid crowded places, wear masks at all times outside, practice social distancing, limit their contacts with people outside of their household, and follow other Covid-19 precautions.
Additionally, authorities are specifically warning people returning to work from Songkran to work from home if possible for two weeks. If not, they should avoid eating with other staff members, wear masks, keep their distance, and follow other Covid-19 precautions at work.
Sunday, April 18th, started the first day of stricter precautions and restrictions for the Chonburi area. You can read more about these restrictions here.
A display board shows cancelled flights at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Sunday following CAAT's decision to suspend flights. Wichan Charoenkiatpakul
Airlines are bracing for further turbulence as the fresh round of infections is depressing the prospect of recovery, while urging the government to step up the vaccination program to end the crisis.
Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth, president of Bangkok Airways, said the airline has to wait for an update on the situation which has raised more concern than the second wave late last year.
In the meantime, airlines have to quickly adapt and comply with the government's guidelines.
Recently, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) announced the suspension of all domestic flights between 11pm and 4am, while asking airlines to adopt social distancing for passengers.
Mr Puttipong, who is also president of the Airlines Association of Thailand, said the urgent need is to bring many doses of vaccines as possible, whether by the government or private sector, to curb the outbreak and continue with the Phuket sandbox -- the reopening scheme for international travellers.
If the government can control the latest wave within one month, the industry might not be severely impacted.
"Layoffs are the last resort for airlines, because it will be more difficult to recruit new staff when air travel rebounds in the next 3-6 months," said Mr Puttipong.
Nuntaporn Komonsittivate, head of commercial operations at Thai Lion Air (TLA), said the tourism industry has not fully recovered from the previous outbreak.
The latest outbreak lowered demand during Songkran, leading to a load factor of around 60-63%, down from the 85% level expected prior to the latest high rate of infections.
The average load factor in April is expected to close at 60%. It also has to adjust flight frequencies on a daily basis and comply with the CAAT's regulations.
Ms Nuntaporn said the airline has to closely monitor policies from both the government and each province as well as the changes in load factor in order to its plan day-to-day operations.
The number of passengers is estimated to significantly drop after the Songkran festival, especially after the spike in new cases triggered stricter travel policies.
In the worst-case scenario, TLA might possibly reduce flight frequencies to only 10-20 flights a day as seen in January due to the second outbreak.
"The government has to speed up the vaccination process because vaccines are the light at the end of the tunnel which help improve not only the tourism sector but also livelihoods of everyone in the country," said Ms Nuntaporn.
Meanwhile, Woranate Laprabang, chief executive of Thai Vietjet, said the CAAT's flights suspension after 11pm affected around 5-8% of total flights. The airline would like the order to be lifted as soon as the situation improves.
"We still hope that the government would understand how much airlines were impacted from the outbreak and offer support through soft loans for airlines," he said.
