Thailand Ministry of Health reports 26,050 new COVID-19 cases and an additional 69 deaths since yesterday. The ministry also announced an additional 22,219 patients recovered from the COVID-19 virus.
The Tourism and Sports Ministry says that there is a high chance that the travel restrictions would be lifted. The country is expecting to scrap the Test and Go and Thailand Pass schemes by June if there are no case surges. Thailand will be celebrating Songkran in April which health experts say could cause a new wave of cases.
Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said Thai tourism has to move forward.
“Thailand started like a rabbit, running quickly last year as we reopened to visitors. We cannot let the country fall behind as many nations are opening borders and have fewer restrictions than us,” Mr. Phiphat said.
With a target of 7 million arrivals this year, the government and tourism agencies have to work together to loosen restrictions. This will allow more tourists to visit the country. Among the current reasons as to why the tourists hesitate are the additional expenses involved in traveling.
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) recently dropped the 72-hour pre-travel RT-PCR test for international arrivals starting from April 1.
On May 1, the government is expecting to replace the RT-PCR test with an ATK Test kit instead. The test will be conducted by a medical professional to ensure its reliability.
Songkran will be a critical test for the country in terms of easing restrictions. The number of cases including the ATK tests should remain at 50,000 – 60,000 cases. The fatalities should also remain under 100 to prove that the easing of measures could be acceptable.