No Omicron Variant In Thailand

Thailand is free from the Omicron COVID-19 variant, the Department of Disease Control director-general said yesterday, guaranteeing the public that foreign tourists are not spreading the mutated strain of the virus in Thailand. Dr. Opas Karnkawinpong reported that health officials are actively monitoring all “sandbox” tourists.

“All 1,007 travellers from South Africa who recently arrived in Thailand tested negative for Covid-19.”

– Dr. Opas Karnkawinpong

Thai officials have imposed restrictions to stop the new variant from spreading inside the country.  Issuance of Thailand Pass has been stopped for 8 African countries particularly Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe

Deputy government spokesperson Rachada Dhnadirek said that the Department of Medical Sciences shows no evidence of the new variant occurring in Thailand.  Their department told all private hospitals to submit specimen samples from all individuals who test positive for COVID-19 for genetic analysis in order to determine the variant and prevalence of each patient.

The Ramathibodi Hospital’s Centre for Medical Genomics is developing a test kit that will efficiently identify the Omicron variant. The test kit should be completed in 2 weeks.

Professor Dr. Nithi Mahanonda, secretary-general of Chulabhorn Royal Academy, also urged the public to be calm and stay updated.  Below are the things you need to know about the new strain of COVID-19 virus named “Omicron”

Where Is the Omicron Variant?
Omicron (B.1.1.529) was discovered in South Africa, but its origins are still undetermined; it may have been imported from an African country or from outside.   According to experts, vaccine resistance and inadequate immunization rates are the biggest concerns for future mutations beyond Omicron.

The World Health Organization classified the Omicron Covid-19 variant as a “variant of concern” on Friday and said that numerous research is underway to examine the variant.

What are countries where the Omicron variant has been detected?
The new variant of the COVID-19 virus called “Omicron” was first detected in South Africa and has now spread to Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany, Israel, Italy, Netherlands, Botswana, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada, Czech Republic, and Hong Kong.

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Source: Bangkok Post