Thailand Ministry of Health reports 28,092 new COVID-19 cases and an additional 96 deaths since yesterday. The ministry also announced that an additional 23,352 patients recovered from the COVID-19 virus.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha called on businesses and the public to ensure that COVID-19 measures stay in place. Under the Test & Go, Sandbox, and quarantine programs, RT-PCR tests and certificate requirements ended.
“From now on, if anything happens, we must accept collective responsibility. But we have made full preparations. I listened to the pros and cons and have eased restrictions wherever possible. But if anything [untoward] comes to pass, we will have to go back to square one. This is the difficult part of running the country,” Gen Prayut said.
From Friday, for people who enter the country through Test and Go an RT-PCR test will be given on arrival. They also will be required to perform an antigen self-test on Day 5 after arrival and provide the results to their hotel. They also will be required to perform an antigen self-test on Day 5 after arrival and provide the results to their hotel. Visitors in the quarantine scheme, including people caught entering the country unlawfully, will be kept in isolation for five days and have an RT-PCR test on Day 4 or 5 after arrival.
The new rules are intended to help resuscitate the economy, in particular the tourism sector, which was among the worst hit, he said. However, everyone must still comply with health precautions prescribed by the Public Health Ministry spokesman Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana said.
Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said that the ministry will this month ask the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) to consider further easing entry rules, such as replacing on-arrival RT-PCR tests with simpler and quicker antigen alternatives.