COVID-19: Thailand adds UK, USA and others to list of high risk countries - new “self-monitoring” measure for travellers

[Jonathan Fairfield]

COVID-19: Thailand adds UK, USA and others to list of high risk countries - new “self-monitoring” measure for travellers

 

Image: Reuters - File

 

Thailand has added the UK, USA and several other countries to list of countries it regards as being ‘high risk’ due to the ongoing coronavirus, COVID-19 pandemic.

 

On 13 March, 2020, at 19.00 Hrs, the Public Health Ministry’s Department of Disease Control, updated its list of countries with ‘ongoing local transmission’.

 

This list now includes: Japan, France, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, the UK and USA.

 

According to an update posted on the Tourism Authority of Thailand website on 14 March, travellers arriving in Thailand from these countries are expected to “ensure self-monitoring for no less than 14 days”.

 

The statement regarding countries with ‘ongoing local transmission’ reads:

 

Travellers arriving from the countries with ongoing local transmission are required to be under observation (supervision without quarantine) in order to ensure self-monitoring for no less than 14 days until the end of the infectious period or the reason for suspicion.

 

• Travellers must record their own symptoms in the reporting system and monitor their symptoms strictly as required by the MOPH.
• The traveller must notify the disease control officer about the places he/she visits, so that a surveillance officer can closely monitor his/her movement and contacts.
• If a traveller feels sick or suspects that he/she has a fever accompanied by at least one of the symptoms; such as, cough, runny nose, sore throat, and shortness of breath within 14 days of arrival into Thailand, he/she must inform a disease control officer immediately upon the symptoms onset or upon suspecting illness to be tested, treated, clinically diagnosed, isolated or quarantined.

 

 

According to the Department of Disease Control, self-monitoring involves: "Body temperature screening twice a day, every day since arriving in Thailand, for a total of 14 days. If you have fever with respiratory symptoms, report to the local health authority". 

Travellers who fail to comply face fines up to 100,000 baht and/or one year in jail.

Meanwhile, as reported previously, travellers from ‘Disease Infected Zones’, such as China – including Hong Kong and Macau, Italy, Iran and South Korea, are required to have a visa prior to entering Thailand. 

 

Travellers from the aforementioned countries also need to provide a medical certificate confirming they are not infected with COVID-19. Failure to provide a ticket will result in them being denied boarding. 

 

Travellers from ‘Disease Infected Zones’ must then undergo a mandatory self-quarantine at their accommodation for 14 days, where their condition will be closely monitored by health officials. 

 

The update from TAT also linked to a Q&A for travellers coming to Thailand: Q&A regarding the Measures for Travellers.

 

The news comes as Thailand on Saturday announced seven new coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of reported cases in the country to 82. The new cases included people who had recently returned from Japan.

 

*post updated to include definition of 'self-monitoring' and punishment for non-compliance.

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2020-03-14

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[JCP108]

This is good for me to know as I am heading to the U.S. tomorrow via Japan and returning via the same transit in about ten days. Will prepare to "self isolate" at home for two weeks upon my return. Let's just keep it at that, though. So, no new restrictions, please. I just need the U.S. to not ban people coming in from Thailand or Japan in the next 48 hours. 

[Oziex1]

Well this piece of bureaucratic brilliance is going to stop the virus in its tracks.

 

The friendly Disease Control Officer is at your beck and call?

[EricTh]

I can bet these people will just ignore the quarantine just like they didn't want to take the masks from Anutin.

 

They came to Thailand to enjoy life and not be cooped up in a small hotel room for 14 days. LOL.

 

What is more practical is to force them to apply for a tourist visa with medical cert. No more visa exempt until the pandemic is gone.

Edited March 14, 2020 by EricTh

[keith101]

People will just stop coming and the economy will hit a new rock bottom so maybe all countries should close their borders except for there own citizens returning home .

[Canuck1966]

We've got Easter soon too. A lot of travelling and family functions!

[Tayaout]

Well that escalated (and will continue) quickly. 

[ThailandRyan]

22 minutes ago, JCP108 said:

This is good for me to know as I am heading to the U.S. tomorrow via Japan and returning via the same transit in about ten days. Will prepare to "self isolate" at home for two weeks upon my return. Let's just keep it at that, though. So, no new restrictions, please. I just need the U.S. to not ban people coming in from Thailand or Japan in the next 48 hours. 

I fly in June to the US through S. Korea and return 14 days later through Japan, I hope this has all runs its course by then or maybe all travel will be restricted and no one will be going anywhere.  It is a concern of course.....one day at a time I guess, can not get to far ahead.....

[CLW]

6 minutes ago, EricTh said:

I can bet these people will just ignore the quarantine just like they didn't want to take the masks from Anutin.

 

They came to Thailand to enjoy life and not be cooped up in a small hotel room for 14 days. LOL.

 

What is more practical is to force them to apply for a tourist visa with medical cert. No more visa exempt until the pandemic is gone.

A medical certificate is not of much help. It most likely won't include a proper test such as RT-PCR just a temperature check and other symptoms. Also it can't be older than 48 hours which means any traveller can be a potential carrier of the virus without showing symptoms at the day of testing because of a long incubation period of the virus. 

[zhounan]

Thailand should add itself in this list.

[Canuck1966]

3 minutes ago, keith101 said:

People will just stop coming and the economy will hit a new rock bottom so maybe all countries should close their borders except for there own citizens returning home .

A coordinated effort to allow citizens to get back to their home country with little red tape would be a good idea.

That cuts out all the problems with medical insurance and the growing xenophobia that is building in certain countries

[CLW]

10 minutes ago, EricTh said:

I can bet these people will just ignore the quarantine just like they didn't want to take the masks from Anutin.

 

They came to Thailand to enjoy life and not be cooped up in a small hotel room for 14 days. LOL.

 

What is more practical is to force them to apply for a tourist visa with medical cert. No more visa exempt until the pandemic is gone.

No quarantine just self monitoring and reporting.

[Mung]

33 minutes ago, JCP108 said:

This is good for me to know as I am heading to the U.S. tomorrow via Japan and returning via the same transit in about ten days. Will prepare to "self isolate" at home for two weeks upon my return. Let's just keep it at that, though. So, no new restrictions, please. I just need the U.S. to not ban people coming in from Thailand or Japan in the next 48 hours. 

Your route may be blocked by then altogether. In my personal opinion you're bonkers for travelling as it is 

Edited March 14, 2020 by Mung

[nightfox]

Is Thailand just waiting to become the next Italy and south Korea???.....This is one ticking time bomb. But in typical Thai action they will wait until the death toll climbs significantly here and there is thousands of infections before they will decide to suspend all flights all bar all entries from Europe and USA. Its about time for once for Thailand put their people first ahead of the Bhat....But we all know that it wont happen

[GeorgeCross]

i can't see all the backpackers self-quarantining

 

or their hostels appreciate being turned into makeshift quarantine centers either

 

they tried this with a hotel in tenerife with 700 guests ordered to stay in their rooms. following day 240 of them were counted swimming and sunbathing by the pool. and they were older crowd!

 

Edited March 14, 2020 by GeorgeCross

[JCP108]

2 minutes ago, Mung said:

Your root may be blocked by then altogether. In my personal opinion you're bonkers for travelling as it is 

Agreed about the bonkers part. I have some important and urgent family issues which I have to deal with in person or I would cancel/postpone my trip. I'm going to have to risk escalating complications for my return as long as I can make the outbound trip tomorrow. 

[Mung]

1 minute ago, JCP108 said:

Agreed about the bonkers part. I have some important and urgent family issues which I have to deal with in person or I would cancel/postpone my trip. I'm going to have to risk escalating complications for my return as long as I can make the outbound trip tomorrow. 

All the best to you and hope things work out for the best ????

[Smiley]

Yep, I'm putting my plans on hold. I booked ahead for the first time in my life. Booked this flight in early Jan just as this situation was in its infancy. Been excited to attentive to mildly concerned watching this unfold. My flight is due to depart March 29 back to Canada, but I've recently decided to scrap it. I'll be in touch next week with the airline to see what I can do about postponing for a month or 2. I live in rural Isaan and just yesterday went out and stocked up on everything. I'll be hunkering down for the foreseeable future watching this situation unfold via the internet.

[stephenterry]

I would reason it's inconceivable that Thailand has such a published low Covid 19 infection rate, given the lax travel controls over tourists and returnees, and communal ways of life here. IMO, crowded government hospitals and shopping malls provide massive everyday risks  - there only has to be a handful of infected people to pan out into a blanket and uncontrollable epidemic.

 

Add that neither the government nor municipalities have provided a health service phone line, or enabled the availability of plentiful masks at pharmacies or 7-11 outlets - it's a right shambles, where people (most probably) get painkillers from doctors and are sent home to die.  

 

Countrywide proactive preventative measures is a foreign language to these face-saving ministerial reactionaries. God help us all.

 

 

[smedly]

1 hour ago, JCP108 said:

This is good for me to know as I am heading to the U.S. tomorrow via Japan and returning via the same transit in about ten days. Will prepare to "self isolate" at home for two weeks upon my return. Let's just keep it at that, though. So, no new restrictions, please. I just need the U.S. to not ban people coming in from Thailand or Japan in the next 48 hours. 

confusing as it is I believe the new additional group of countries including UK and US have a different set of rules from the other group e.g. China

 

Read the article again 

[ChipButty]

Are they going to give out Hotline numbers to call? Thats going to be fun and games with 30 million tourist 

[cubism001]

19 minutes ago, stephenterry said:

I would reason it's inconceivable that Thailand has such a published low Covid 19 infection rate, given the lax travel controls over tourists and returnees, and communal ways of life here. IMO, crowded government hospitals and shopping malls provide massive everyday risks  - there only has to be a handful of infected people to pan out into a blanket and uncontrollable epidemic.

 

Add that neither the government nor municipalities have provided a health service phone line, or enabled the availability of plentiful masks at pharmacies or 7-11 outlets - it's a right shambles, where people (most probably) get painkillers from doctors and are sent home to die.  

 

Countrywide proactive preventative measures is a foreign language to these face-saving ministerial reactionaries. God help us all.

 

 

You should be in the states. In Thailand most of the 'foreigners' are middle class; in the states, we're dirt, & the medical care is suited to us as sub-human.

[bill1369]

1 hour ago, JCP108 said:

This is good for me to know as I am heading to the U.S. tomorrow via Japan and returning via the same transit in about ten days. Will prepare to "self isolate" at home for two weeks upon my return. Let's just keep it at that, though. So, no new restrictions, please. I just need the U.S. to not ban people coming in from Thailand or Japan in the next 48 hours. 

 

I'd be concerned Immigration at LAX might require a 14 day quarantine of you. Good luck!!

 

Edited March 14, 2020 by bill1369

[Jingthing]

1 hour ago, zhounan said:

Thailand should add itself in this list.

There is the irony! 

To the US travel bans as well. 

[JCP108]

3 minutes ago, bill1369 said:

 

I'd be concerned Immigration at LAX might reuire a 14 day quarantine of you. Good luck!!

 

I'm flying Tokyo to Chicago. Can't find anything that says O'Hare is requiring quarantine. 

[KhaoYai]

1 hour ago, Jonathan Fairfield said:

Travellers arriving from the countries with ongoing local transmission are required to be under observation (supervision without quarantine) in order to ensure self-monitoring for no less than 14 days until the end of the infectious period or the reason for suspicion.

As usual - clear as mud and possibly a bad translation.  Reading that it appears that the traveller must be suspected of having the virus already to be subjected to these measures.

 

I guess the only way we'll get to know exactly what the situation is, is when people report their experiences on arrival.

Edited March 14, 2020 by KhaoYai

[Jingthing]

29 minutes ago, stephenterry said:

I would reason it's inconceivable that Thailand has such a published low Covid 19 infection rate, given the lax travel controls over tourists and returnees, and communal ways of life here. IMO, crowded government hospitals and shopping malls provide massive everyday risks  - there only has to be a handful of infected people to pan out into a blanket and uncontrollable epidemic.

 

Add that neither the government nor municipalities have provided a health service phone line, or enabled the availability of plentiful masks at pharmacies or 7-11 outlets - it's a right shambles, where people (most probably) get painkillers from doctors and are sent home to die.  

 

Countrywide proactive preventative measures is a foreign language to these face-saving ministerial reactionaries. God help us all.

 

 

Yep. 

It's a way to scapegoat foreigners as when they finally start widespread testing here it would be shocking if community transmission isn't already well under way here. 

 

A lot in common with the USA. 

 

[Cheesekraft]

sure, throw people who are risk in packed jails, that will help. Especially since you can go from no symptoms to critical condition in a couple of days

Edited March 14, 2020 by Cheesekraft

[NanLaew]

32 minutes ago, stephenterry said:

Add that neither the government nor municipalities have provided a health service phone line, or enabled the availability of plentiful masks at pharmacies or 7-11 outlets - it's a right shambles, where people (most probably) get painkillers from doctors and are sent home to die. 

Hotline 1422 Questions and Answers - Report Risks for Patients with COVID-19

 

https://news.thaipbs.or.th/content/289487

[Rimmer]

A flame has been removed