TallGuyJohninBKK

All of the key COVID indicators reported by the Thai government for last week are at their highest levels in at least six months. --The latest weekly report of 718 new weekly COVID hospitalizations is Thailand's highest reported number since early July (1,193). --The latest weekly report of 11 new COVID deaths is Thailand's highest reported number since early August (12). --The latest weekly report of 209 currently hospitalized COVID patients considered in serious condition is the highest reported number since mid-July (214). --The latest weekly report of 149 currently hospitalized COVID patients requiring intubation / ventilation in order to breath is the highest since early July (166). https://www.facebook.com/informationcovid19/photos_by https://ddc.moph.go.th/covid19-dashboard/?dashboard=main (the second website above also has all the history of weekly MoPH reports, but appears to be down / not responding at the time of this posting)

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Thailand MoPH Weekly COVID report for Jan. 14 - 20, 2024: --718 new COVID hospitalizations, up 93 from the prior week --11 new COVID deaths, up 4 from the prior week --209 COVID patients hospitalized in serious condition, up 32 from the prior week --149 COVID patients hospitalized requiring intubation/ventilation to breathe, up 24 from the prior week Source link

I'm reminded just how effective the 90-day reporting system is at maintaining enforcement and compliance with Immigration rules..... ...every time I read a news report here about this or that farang having lived here unbothered for 4, 6, 10 etc. years past their last permission to stay date, usually until someone grasses on them for some reason.

Just bought a new one for home, after my old one of 4-5 years finally gave up the ghost... These are the two models I've used and endorse (just endorsing the models, not where to buy them). The SW model I bought a pair of probably 4-5 years ago from Aliexpress and have used continuously ever since... One still running fine. The other's built-in battery finally just recently stopped charging. So I bought the Dienmern model below from a Thai Shopee seller. So far, the Dienmern works great and also is very accurate in its readings. Both charge built-in lithium batteries via an included USB cable. You can unplug the cable and they'll run for several days on battery power. Or, do as I do, which is just leave them continuously plugged in and fully charged. When they're plugged in, the display remains on continuously. But at least with the SW model, when on battery power, the display turns off after a set period of time until you press an activate button again. Which is another reason I leave mine plugged in. Sndway SW-825 https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2251832640444351.html?gatewayAdapt=glo2usa4itemAdapt AND Dienmern DM103 https://www.lazada.co.th/products/pm25-dienmern-3-in-1-i4545601219-s18494901078.html

https://covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#datatracker-home The “tripledemic”—made up of Covid-19, the flu and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)—retreated for a second week in a row last week, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data on Covid-19, after a surge in respiratory disease over the holidays led to a double-digit spike in Covid-19 hospitalizations and deaths the week after Christmas. In the week ending Jan. 13, CDC data showed 24 states plus Washington, D.C., experienced “high or very high” levels of patients seeking care for respiratory illness symptoms—down from 37 states and territories the week ending Jan. 6. Respiratory viruses are also putting less strain on the nation’s hospitals: Covid-19, the flu and RSV accounted for a combined 6.3% of total emergency room visits last week (3.3% for the flu, 2.5% for Covid and 0.5% for RSV), down from 7.9% across all three viruses the week prior and 9.9% in the last full week of December. Overall, Covid-19 emergency room visits dropped 19% week-over-week, with 32,861 coronavirus hospital admissions over the course of the week. (more) https://www.forbes.com/sites/caileygleeson/2024/01/19/tripledemic-surge-eases-as-covid-rsv-flu-figures-drop-for-second-week/

China’s population declined for a second consecutive year in 2023, driven by declining birth rates and a major surge in the number of deaths, highlighting the potential impact of the country’s decision to abandon its stringent zero-Covid strategy at the start of that year. According to data published by China’s National Bureau of Statistics, the country recorded 11.1 million deaths in 2023—an increase of around 690,000 compared to the previous year. ... Bloomberg notes the sharp spike in deaths is likely linked to a surge in Covid-19 the country saw last year after it lifted nearly three years of harsh zero-Covid measures that included extended lockdowns and mandatory testing. (more) https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2024/01/17/china-saw-nearly-700000-more-deaths-in-2023-after-zero-covid-ended/

And regarding COVID vaccinations for folks in and around Bangkok:

Regarding the COVID piece of this: "New COVID hospitalizations in Thailand rose to 664 for the week of Dec. 31 to Jan. 6, up 11.8% from 594 the prior week, and reaching the highest new COVID hospitalizations count in the past six months since early July. Last week also marked the first time the weekly new COVID hospitalizations tally had topped 600 since mid-July. Likewise, the count of currently hospitalized COVID patients considered in serious condition rose to 144 for the latest week, up 20% from 120 the prior week, and reaching the highest count in the past five months since early August. [emphasis added] https://aseannow.com/topic/1316796-thailands-latest-seasonal-covid-wave-enters-2024-with-continuing-upward-surge/

Already addressed and answered above. Lots of people are talking about it, just not spreading false conspiracy theories about it. Plenty of elaboration in the long article below of the various factors contributing to the excess deaths issue: What can explain the excess mortality in the U.S. and Europe in 2022? https://healthfeedback.org/what-can-explain-the-excess-mortality-in-the-u-s-and-europe-in-2022/ including... COVID-19 vaccines aren’t responsible for the excess mortality of 2022 Unsurprisingly, reports of excess mortality well into 2022 became fodder for claims by vaccine-skeptic groups that mass vaccination against COVID-19 was responsible for this increase in deaths (see here and here for examples of such social media posts). An article by the website The Exposé, published at the end of November 2022, claimed that “at least 118k children and young adults have ‘died suddenly’ in the USA” and that this was “most likely due to the Covid-19 injections”. This is a variation of the recurring false allegations that COVID-19 vaccines are unsafe and deadly that Health Feedback debunked on multiple occasions (see here, here, and here). As we’ll show below, the claims linking vaccination to excess mortality are baseless. [emphasis added]

Then you've got a lot of checking to do because, as listed in the various fact checks above.... Reuters, Agence France-Presse (AFP), Healthfeedback.org and factcheck.org -- and the various experts they consult with and the facts they cite -- all say Malhotra is just WRONG! He's simply one of a small number of prominent anti-vax outcasts who has repeatedly been shown to be peddling misinformation.

Good old Andrew Bridgen.... one of the familar COVID vaccine misinformation voices in Parliament: Andrew Bridgen's vaccine debate claims fact checked Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen made a number of claims about the safety and efficacy of Covid-19 vaccines during a ’Vaccines: Potential Harms’ adjournment debate he raised in the House of Commons on 13 December. Some of these claims were missing important context, so we’ve fact checked four of them in detail. We have previously fact checked Mr Bridgen’s claims about Covid-19 vaccines twice in recent weeks—once when he made an inaccurate claim at Prime Minister’s Questions about vaccines during pregnancy and breastfeeding, and separately during a larger debate on Covid-19 vaccines. https://fullfact.org/health/andrew-bridgen-vaccine-safety-debate/ MPs' vaccine debate fact checked Adverse events aren’t the same as confirmed ‘vaccine injuries’ Mr Bridgen claimed: “A study published in The Journal of the American Medical Association, included 7,806 children aged five or younger who were followed for an average of 91.4 days after their first Pfizer vaccination. The study showed that one in 500 children under five years of age who received a Pfizer mRNA—messenger ribonucleic acid—covid vaccine were hospitalised with a vaccine injury, and one in 200 had symptoms ongoing for weeks or months afterwards.” It’s misleading to call these ‘vaccine injuries’. The study in question was looking at events that occurred after vaccination, but were not necessarily related to or caused by the vaccine. ..... Pfizer did say they hadn’t tested transmission Later, Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen said: “Surely the hon. Gentleman is well aware of the much-publicised interview of a Pfizer representative by a committee of the European Parliament only a couple of weeks ago, when they admitted that they had done no testing whatever to see whether the vaccination prevented transmission of the virus.” Mr Bridgen’s comment implied that Pfizer had originally claimed its Covid-19 vaccine stopped transmission. Pfizer was always clear that it did not test whether the vaccines reduced the risk of transmission among already infected individuals. In other words, it didn’t test whether an infected person was more or less likely to spread the disease if they were vaccinated. https://fullfact.org/health/vaccine-safety-westminster-debate/ And once again, there are other similar instances where other of his public comments on the vaccines have been proven wrong.

As for the anti-vaxers claims about a connection to so-called excess deaths, that's also been repeatedly debunked and proven false. No Evidence Excess Deaths Linked to Vaccines, Contrary to Claims Online https://www.factcheck.org/2023/04/scicheck-no-evidence-excess-deaths-linked-to-vaccines-contrary-to-claims-online/ COVID-19 vaccines aren’t responsible for the excess mortality of 2022 Unsurprisingly, reports of excess mortality well into 2022 became fodder for claims by vaccine-skeptic groups that mass vaccination against COVID-19 was responsible for this increase in deaths (see here and here for examples of such social media posts). An article by the website The Exposé, published at the end of November 2022, claimed that “at least 118k children and young adults have ‘died suddenly’ in the USA” and that this was “most likely due to the Covid-19 injections”. This is a variation of the recurring false allegations that COVID-19 vaccines are unsafe and deadly that Health Feedback debunked on multiple occasions (see here, here, and here). As we’ll show below, the claims linking vaccination to excess mortality are baseless. https://healthfeedback.org/what-can-explain-the-excess-mortality-in-the-u-s-and-europe-in-2022/ No evidence COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are significant contributing factor to UK’s 30,000 excess cardiovascular deaths Millions of people have viewed a BBC News interview with a British cardiologist who used the broadcast to spread misinformation about COVID-19 vaccines. ... The BHF spokesperson also rejected the claim that mRNA vaccines, which were rolled out in England in December 2020 (here), had caused the excess number of deaths, writing in an email that the benefits of vaccination “far outweigh the very small risk of rare side effects like myocarditis or pericarditis for the vast majority of people, especially as people get older”. Reuters has addressed similar claims linking COVID-19 vaccines with excess mortality (here, here and here), cardiac arrests (here, here and here), and other heart issues. https://www.reuters.com/article/factcheck-vaccines-excessdeaths/fact-check-no-evidence-covid-19-mrna-vaccines-are-significant-contributing-factor-to-uks-30000-excess-cardiovascular-deaths-idUSL1N3490M3/ Lots more of the same from various reputable sources... But the above links are a good sampling showing the nonsense of the claims.

Malhotra has been proven wrong so many times regarding his claims about COVID vaccines it's hard to keep track: UK cardiologist misleads on Covid-19 vaccine safety A cardiologist from the United Kingdom says Covid-19 vaccines should be suspended because they pose a greater threat than the virus itself. This is false; experts say his research misleads on the risks of vaccination by cherry-picking evidence and relying on flawed studies, and public health authorities agree the benefits of the shots outweigh the risks. https://factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com.32L483D Article by cardiologist Aseem Malhotra made unsupported claims about the benefits and risks of COVID-19 vaccination Inadequate support: Malhotra’s claim that COVID-19 vaccines might do more harm than good is based on anecdotal evidence and low-quality studies—some of them disputed—that are insufficient to support his claim. Cherry-picking: The article cited mainly studies suggesting a negative effect of COVID-19 vaccines, but didn’t acknowledge the wider body of evidence showing that the vaccines are safe and effective. https://healthfeedback.org/claimreview/article-by-cardiologist-aseem-malhotra-made-unsupported-claims-about-benefits-risks-covid-19-vaccination/ COVID-19 Vaccine Benefits Outweigh Small Risks, Contrary to Flawed Claim From U.K. Cardiologist Dozens of studies support the use of the mRNA COVID-19 vaccines, which have a good safety profile and work well in preventing severe disease and death. Yet, citing a single, flawed paper, a British cardiologist known for peddling misinformation has misleadingly argued that the shots are harmful and “should never have been approved.” https://www.factcheck.org/2023/05/scicheck-covid-19-vaccine-benefits-outweigh-small-risks-contrary-to-flawed-claim-from-u-k-cardiologist/ etc etc etc.

I've often thought that Thailand would be better off if.... --the police generals were left to run the airports.... --and the aviation professionals were left to run the Royal Thai Police!

Just bought a new one for home, after my old one of 4-5 years finally gave up the ghost... These are the two models I've used and endorse (just endorsing the models, not where to buy them): Sndway SW-825 https://www.aliexpress.us/item/2251832640444351.html?gatewayAdapt=glo2usa4itemAdapt AND Dienmern DM103 https://www.lazada.co.th/products/pm25-dienmern-3-in-1-i4545601219-s18494901078.html

Just coronate him now as King and Grifter for Life Trump.... And then when he eventually kicks it, Don Jr. can be named the new King of the U.S., followed by Barron thereafter. King Trump I, II, III, etc. No need for "fake" elections. [ Where's that presidentially directed Seal Team now??? ]

You'll remember that past governments had the bright ideas of installing big water spraying hoses on the ground in areas of Bangkok to spray water in the air... AND installing some supposed big air purifier device I wanna say around CentralWorld to supposedly suck up local air pollution.... AND I think some of them even did talk about installing big fans on the tops of tall buildings at one point.... AND flying a dozen or so drones carrying sprayer tanks of some liquid stuff that supposedly would take pollutants out of the air..... Words fail....

There have been lots of studies in the real world identifying and confirming the harmful health effects from PM2.5 pollution. It's not PM2.5 pollution that directly kills you. It's PM2.5 pollution that CAUSES higher levels of heart attacks, cardiovascular disease, lung problems, etc... and those are the things that end up killing people. "Long-term exposure to PM2.5 pollution particles can affect lung function and worsen medical conditions such as asthma and heart disease. Scientific studies have linked increases in daily PM2.5 exposure with increased respiratory and cardiovascular hospital admissions, emergency department visits and deaths. Studies also suggest that long-term exposure to fine particulate matter may be associated with increased rates of chronic bronchitis, reduced lung function and increased mortality from lung cancer and heart disease." https://thethaiger.com/news/national/report-attributes-32000-premature-deaths-in-thailand-to-air-pollution

I'd like to see some credible scientific research that confirms the notion that drinking tea or capsules of any of the above referenced herbals does anything significant to combat the health related symptoms of PM2.5 air pollution exposure. IMHO, there's a reason that these kinds of local "treatments" never make their way out into the developed world of science and medicine.... And it's probably for the same reasons that flood control agencies around the world aren't using boats and their propellers in rivers to prevent local flooding, and doctors aren't advising their patients to wear amulets to ward off evil spirits.

There have been past reports estimating that PM2.5 pollution in Thailand is responsible for more than 30,000 deaths per year. Air pollution responsible for 29,000 deaths across 31 Thai provinces in 2021— Greenpeace "Bangkok– PM2.5 air pollution was behind approximately 29,000 deaths in Thailand in 2021, according to a Greenpeace Southeast Asia analysis of IQAir data. [1] The number of air pollution-related deaths per capita in Thailand last year exceeded those from road accidents, drug use and homicide combined, the report finds." https://www.greenpeace.org/southeastasia/press/45425/air-pollution-responsible-for-29000-deaths-across-31-thai-provinces-in-2021-greenpeace/ Report attributes 32,000 premature deaths in Thailand to air pollution "According to the State of Global Air 2020 Report, around 32,000 premature deaths in Thailand, back in 2019, have been attributed to air pollution. The report cites the PM2.5 pollution particles as the main culprit as particles in that size range are the most likely to travel deeply into the respiratory tract, reaching the lungs. Exposure to these fine particles can cause short-term health effects, such as eye, nose, throat and lung irritation, coughing, sneezing, runny nose and shortness of breath. But the long-term effects of being exposed to the particles is much more sinister." https://thethaiger.com/news/national/report-attributes-32000-premature-deaths-in-thailand-to-air-pollution

The past research on this involving Bangkok has shown that the PM2.5 pollution here varies by season. During the historically worst times of the year -- December to March or so, the predominant elements are from agricultural burning (both locally and cross-border), then along with lesser contributions from vehicle exhaust, industrial plants and other sources, including things like construction activity and even temple crematoriums. During the rest of the year, including the rainy season times, the agricultural burning element is less...and vehicle emissions play a larger role... but the overall pollution levels are lower. "The CMB results showed consistent important source factors at both sites of biomass OB, diesel vehicles, secondary inorganic PM and industry. The biomass OB contribution was the most dominant in the dry season while the vehicle emission was most dominant in the wet season. In dry period, at PCD, the most important contributors to PM2.5 were biomass burning (35%), and diesel vehicles (21%) and those at AIT were also biomass burning (36%), diesel vehicles (26%), inorganic secondary PM (15%) and industry (5%). In the wet period, at PCD, the most important contributors to PM2.5 were diesel vehicles (28%), biomass burning (26%) and inorganic secondary PM (21%)." https://www.jica.go.jp/Resource/jica-ri/publication/booksandreports/l75nbg00000kjwkk-att/Final_report.pdf

Because... 1: even though COVID deaths among young people are relatively rare, COVID even now is still causing a lot of hospitalizations and health problems among the young... example from the U.S. last September: "a new analysis of federal data from the American Academy of Pediatrics showed hospital admissions among children are rising faster than average. Nearly 1,200 children were admitted to the hospital with Covid-19 during the week ending September 9, marking a five-fold increase over the past three months. Hospitalizations among adults increased about three-fold in that same time period. Admissions among children remain below previous pandemic peaks. There were about 1,800 new pediatric admissions in a week at the height of last winter’s wave, and more than 6,500 weekly admissions during Omicron, the AAP analysis shows. Children accounted for 6% of all Covid-19 hospital admissions during the week ending September 9, federal data shows. And children under 5 were the most at risk, with about half of all pediatric Covid-19 hospitalizations among those younger than 5, according to the AAP analysis." https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/22/health/covid-hospitalizations-seniors-kids-vaccines/index.html And 2: the history of vaccines over decades has shown that any vaccine related side effects happen shortly after vaccination -- not many months or years later. So experts in the field discount the anti-vaxer claims about some potential future harms. Plus right now, we're already three-plus years into the global COVID vaccination program with more than 12 billion total doses administered. 5 Reasons We Know The COVID-19 Vaccines Don't Have Long-Term Health Effects "“The only long-term effect of the COVID-19 vaccines is survival,” says Dr. Cunningham. “There are no adverse long-term effects to worry about. Contracting COVID-19, however, can leave you with lingering health problems.” ... 1. History has showed us that with vaccines, adverse effects occur within eight weeks of vaccination—not years later. ... Neither mRNA technology—nor viral vector technology—is new. ... The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were created using messenger RNA (or mRNA) technology, which has been used for about 10 years in cancer treatment, with no long-term effects detected." https://www.henryford.com/blog/2022/02/5-reasons-we-know-the-covid-vaccines-dont-have-longterm-effects

Here's some additional info on that... The good news is, the government after being quiet on COVID vaccines for quite a long while recently, has just begun promoting details their availability in Bangkok since the start of the new year. The offering below involving local public health centers is for every Wednesday. The bad news is, unfortunately, the vaccine they're offering is, as the graphic below indicates, the older Pfizer bivalent version, and not the newer Pfizer or Moderna monovalent vaccines launched in the U.S., U.K., and elsewhere last fall that target the newer XBB-heritage variants. For expats, as long as you can show you're a long-term resident here and not a tourist (such as via a pink card or visa/extension stamp in your passport), then there should be no charge under the government's program. I've reached out to several agencies here lately on the issue of when/if Thailand, either the government or private hospitals, are going to source the newer vaccines... And so far, the answers have been silence. Source link Here's a translation of another one of the Bangkok recent announcements: " From January 2024 onwards🔴 Where is a good place to get the COVID-19 vaccine? Public Health Service Center, Department of Health invites you to get vaccinated against Covid 19💉 We accept walk-ins every Wednesday, except public holidays. Time 09.00 - 15.00 hrs. at 69 public health service centers For more information, call 0 2203 2883 during business days and times"

In general at BKK CW, once you get a new passport, they want your next 90 day report to be IN PERSON. And then once you've done that, the future ones can then be done online again. Last time around I had a new passport last year, I was first rejected for online. Then tried doing a mail-in, and got a response that wasn't acceptable, and was required to go to BKK CW in person.