Level 4 COVID alert issued after surge in infections
The Public Health Ministry has raised its COVID-19 alert to Level 4 following a sharp increase in Omicron variant infections nationwide.
However, the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) indicated that no lockdowns will be brought back to bring the current outbreak to an end.
Ministry spokesman, Rungrueng Kijphati, posted on Facebook on Monday (Feb 21) that a meeting of the ministry’s Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) decided that the alert level will be raised nationwide and containment measures stepped up in high-risk areas.
The move came as the number of new infections, severe cases and deaths continue to rise, with authorities noting an increasing risk of infection among family members and close acquaintances as a result of taking part in collective activities such as dining out, playing sports, and attending wedding and funeral ceremonies.
Individuals from at-risk groups – including the elderly, those with underlying health conditions and the unvaccinated – continue to account for most COVID-related deaths.
Under the new alert, people are encouraged to work from home, avoid non-essential inter-provincial travel, suspend overseas trips, close at-risk venues and avoid large gatherings.
The ministry had raised the alert to Level 4 in some red-zone provinces early last month, when the situation was less severe than now. With the latest announcement, the alert will now apply to all provinces nationwide.
Kiattiphum Wongrajit, permanent secretary for public health, said that the Public Health Ministry wanted to remind the public of the threat posed by the virus.
“We had previously announced [the Level-4 alert], but the public may have forgotten the warning,” Dr Kiattiphum said, adding that if people fail to comply with precautions and the outbreak does not slow, then strict curbs may have to be brought back.
CCSA spokeswoman, Apisamai Srirangson, said the CCSA will now focus on the number of deaths and severe cases, rather than the spike in new cases.
“While the CCSA is unlikely to bring back lockdowns, Thailand still cannot afford to relax virus curbs in the same way as other countries have done. We have to come up with our own approach,” Dr Apisamai said.
She was also trying to allay concerns about the rumoured suspension of the Test & Go scheme, saying the public health system is still sufficiently equipped to handle foreign arrivals who test positive.
Jakkarat Pittayawonganont, director of the Department of Disease Control’s epidemiology division, said that throughout the country, infections have been increasing across all groups, particularly among working-age people and children.
He said that the 18 provinces promoted for tourism must be closely monitored. Of them, eight provinces – Bangkok, Chon Buri, Phuket, Kanchanaburi, Krabi, Phangnga, Nonthaburi, and Pathum Thani – have seen case numbers fluctuate, though the trend is still rising.