National –
Thailand’s Ministry of Public Health is aiming to propose a shortening of the mandatory period of state quarantine for foreign tourists from 14 days to 10 days to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA), the ministry permanent secretary said yesterday, October 7.
Dr. Kiattiphum Wongrajit, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Public Health, stated that the shorter quarantine period would attract more foreign tourists to visit the country during the first measures of its re-opening.
“Currently, a very limited number of Thais and foreigners had traveled to the country and had to go through 14-day state quarantine. But if the quarantine period was reduced, it would make a larger group of tourists enter the country which would also generate income for Thailand’s economy together with a better health and safety balance,” Kiattiphum stated.
The Disease Control Department (DCD) has been tasked to estimate the effectiveness of quarantine periods of 12 days, 10 days, and seven days, giving a baseline of 14 days quarantine as 100 percent effective.
The Ministry is initially targeting a 10-day quarantine which will be proposed to the CCSA at a meeting in the next two weeks. If the shortened quarantine period was effective, the Ministry of Public Health would evaluate the Covid-19 situation before eventually shortening it to 7 days.
However, the shortening quarantine period would not be applicable to all incoming tourists. Those who come from high-risk countries will remain subject to 14-day quarantine while those from low-risk countries might eventually be subject to only seven days, Dr. Kiattiphum concluded.
The exact criteria and list of high or low risk countries was not given to the associated Thai Press.
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