Is new COVID-19 variant a cause of concern for Thailand?

[Eric Loh]

2 hours ago, Willy Wombat said:

Sth Africa is only 35% fully vaccinated and basically a 3rd world poohole.

 

Shock horror. A virus spreads quickly in a  dirty unvaccinated country

 

 

 

 

Developed countries need to share the blame for hoarding vaccines in the early stages of the pandemic. Even now less than 10% of African countries hit the COVID-19 vaccination goal. More should be done to donate vaccines to under developed countries. 

Edited November 29, 2021 by Eric Loh
wrong word

[Tonypandy]

6 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

Aren't all vaccines for all viruses including the flu, common colds etc...a trillion dollar business. It's just not covid vaccines so look a little farther than to play the conspiracy game.

Not quite, the flu and cold industry is worth around 18 billion, way short of the trillions you imagined 

[Cake Monster]

Yes ! The new Covid Variant should cause concern for Thailand, as it should for every Country on the Planet.

But Thailand has already shown a disregard for Genome Testing, thats one of the main reasons they were placed on the original UK Red List, so its highly likely they will just carry on as normal, until things reach crisis point, as they did with Delta.

With just slightly more than 50% double Vaxxed, and about 16 % of the population vaccine resistant, " Open Borders", its a place for breeding the virus for sure.

[Jeffr2]

3 minutes ago, Eric Loh said:

Developed countries need to share the blame for hoarding vaccines in the early stages of the pandemic. Even now less than 10% of African countries hit the COVID-19 vaccination goal. More should be done to donate vaccines to under developed countries. 

Vaccine hesitancy is also a big issue there. Misinformation at it's worst.

[Jeffr2]

5 hours ago, sungod said:

https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2021-11-28-dont-panic-omicron-symptoms-seem-to-be-mild-doctor/

 

Thank god for a level headed statement,

 

“At this stage there is no need to panic. In fact, I confirmed this with other colleagues in different areas in Pretoria and the Midrand as well as with specialists in hospitals.

“There is only one patient who is in ICU on a ventilator but we are not sure if it is the Omnicon or the Delta variant because the ICU does not do sequencing.”

 

We will just have to wait and see...........

A bit premature....hardly level headed.

[Tonypandy]

3 hours ago, mommysboy said:

It's a concern for sure if the vaccines don't work as well.  In fact, that may signal 'square one' for Thailand.

 

But it may be a blessing if it produces milder symptoms. 

 

Right to be concerned.

 

(The article suggests a specific vaccine is round the corner- no way.  It may take a week or two to formulate, but then there are trials, approval, and scaling up.)

So will be ready in 3 weeks then lol

[sungod]

4 hours ago, Jeffr2 said:

I guess you also believed the Chinese docs who said their vaccine was very effective against the virus?  Too funny....I'll wait for a report from the WHO or CDC.

Going back to your original question, I believe all the people who's lives it saved.

 

Whilst you are talking about WHO reports, what do you think about their opinion of Sinovac? They seem to quite like it and recommend it.

 

https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/the-sinovac-covid-19-vaccine-what-you-need-to-know

[sungod]

2 minutes ago, Jeffr2 said:

A bit premature....hardly level headed.

As I said, take it up with her, she is only the chair of the SA Medical association, I just posted her report.

[dunroaming]

3 hours ago, IamNoone88 said:

Cause for concern? Let's just put it like this .... I don't want to catch it.

Yes of course it is a cause for concern.  But the concern is as much about ongoing restrictions as it is about the virus itself.  I think it is fair to say that most people are more worried about not being able to travel or even just getting out for a beer or two than actually catching the dreaded virus.

[zzaa09]

45 minutes ago, Jeffr2 said:

You said it was mild based on a report by one doctor seeing a few patients a day.

And we have little to work on as of yet. Any early reports and scientific observations are suggestions that the Omicron cooties is a weaker mutation - almost all are mild or asymptomatic infections. 

 

As have a few variants, they never received the attention, of the last two years. 

[GrandPapillon]

the only question that matters is: will Thailand go in full lockdown again over this new variant? from their past mistakes, they probably will ????

 

brace for impact ????

 

 

[darrendsd]

Lazada have just announced a huge spike in sales of crystal balls ????

[Thunglom]

It seems that Omicron  infection rate is the highest so far. So a lot will depend on how severe the effects are. If it results in lots of hospitalisation, can Thailand cope?

As a countrywitho only mid-range vaccination numbers, many people could be highly vulnerable to this virus.

slowing transmission down is the first step.

So I would think the most logical thing to so at present is err on the side of caution until we know how virulent Omicron actually is.

 

in the end it needs tone be an improvement of international measures

"we are not safe until we are ALL safe"

Edited November 29, 2021 by Thunglom

[paul1804]

I do not doubt that a new variant exists and this will not stop there, just like the flu has for many years  we constantly see knew strands but remember WHO don't always tell the truth!!! They even hide the truth and verge on inverting the truth. 

[Jeffr2]

54 minutes ago, sungod said:

Going back to your original question, I believe all the people who's lives it saved.

 

Whilst you are talking about WHO reports, what do you think about their opinion of Sinovac? They seem to quite like it and recommend it.

 

https://www.who.int/news-room/feature-stories/detail/the-sinovac-covid-19-vaccine-what-you-need-to-know

There is currently no substantive data available related to the impact of COVID-19 vaccine Sinovac-CoronaVac on transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 disease.

[paul1804]

I wonder why they would recommend it when it has such low level of prevention, anything the Chinese produce will get the thumbs up from WHO irrespective of its quality and effectiveness. They didn't tell the truth about Wuhan and even stated untruths so ask yourself why! 

[KhaoYai]

8 hours ago, huangnon said:

Of course. Covid-19 is now a trillion dollar industry, with bio-tech companies starting up and being funded in the US; San Diego probably now being the world's bio-tech center.

If Covid disappears, where do these new start-ups and vaccine / testing kit manufacturing plants (and all the investment billions) go?

Ahh 'Big Pharma' one of the conspiracy theorists biggest targets.  I have no doubt that Pharmeceutical companies make billions, they also spend billions 'at risk'.  Many of us on Asean Now wouldn't be here if it wasn't for drugs, vaccines and advances in the treatment of diseases in general - I certainly wouldn't.  I have no doubt that there will be examples of sharp practice in the medical world, just as there are in all spheres but just remember this, no other industry is subject to the amount of scrutiny that they are and of course, they are also vulnerable to competition and illegal generic copies of their products.

 

One scam that I do think exists is in Covid 19 testing.  I'm sure there are greater extremes but in general a PCR test in the UK costs between £59 and £160 - its the same test, how can one be almost 3 times more expensive? Thailand is no different.  Everyone it seems, has jumped on the bandwagon and become a Covid tester and as with any other 'in things' - there are more than the average amount of scammers and rip off merchants involved.  In my opinion, any government that imposes a testing requirement should provide those tests themselves at a reasonable cost.

Edited November 29, 2021 by KhaoYai

[kimamey]

5 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

Same with the Delta,, we deny it that it is in the country, If it comes we don't talk about it and when the cases rise we tell the people it is their own mistake, because they don't keep distance, wear a msk and want to drink alcohol.

Problems all solved......nothing to worry...

 

I am wondering why they don't take adequate measures now already, because it can prevent worse. 

That's what the did originally and to some extent it worked. 

We need a few weeks to see how bad this is so makes sense to take precautions now and ear then later

[sungod]

12 minutes ago, Jeffr2 said:

There is currently no substantive data available related to the impact of COVID-19 vaccine Sinovac-CoronaVac on transmission of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19 disease.

No, just saves lives

Edited November 29, 2021 by sungod

[raccos21]

Only 3 Covid cases.

https://amp.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/26/shanghai-cancels-hundreds-of-flights-shuts-schools-over-three-covid-cases

[VBF]

4 hours ago, Bkk Brian said:

Best case scenario, the beast, Omicron is already here in Thailand and has not been noticed along with no new clusters that have alerted officials making it nothing to really worry about but then I woke up!

 

I find it amazing that some here are peddling early reports that it has only been mild cases so far when that is completely out of context with the reality of assessing its true severity. Fact is there are serious cases and only further time will tell just how serious it is.

 

The latest update from WHO issued yesterday on Omicron highlights the reports of early mild cases and puts it into more perspective:

 

"There is currently no information to suggest that symptoms associated with Omicron are different from those from other variants.  Initial reported infections were among university students—younger individuals who tend to have more mild disease—but understanding the level of severity of the Omicron variant will take days to several weeks"

 

As does a Leading Infectious Disease expert from South Africa:

 

Just a note of caution - We know that getting a rapid understanding of disease severity with #Omicron (particularly in vaccinated individuals and re-infections) is absolutely critical, but it's just too early for reliable data. Observations from clinicians on the ground are always important, and we lean heavily on them, but we need to be cautious about jumping on early reports that all cases with this variant are mild. Most of the early spread was amongst younger people, with outbreaks in universities likely being amplification events. So with this, and the time lag for infections to progress to severe disease and hospitalisation, we would only expect to see the impact on hospitalisations in the next few weeks.

 

For some balance, here is a report on severe cases:

 

“Young people, in their 20s to just over their late 30s, are coming in with moderate to severe disease, some needing intensive care. About 65% are not vaccinated and most of the rest are only half-vaccinated,” said Mathivha. “I’m worried that as the numbers go up, the public health care facilities will become overwhelmed.”

 

So, despite it being early days for Omicron, it appears that vaccination is still likely to be the answer.

[Bkk Brian]

5 minutes ago, VBF said:

So, despite it being early days for Omicron, it appears that vaccination is still likely to be the answer.

Agreed, I think the real test will transpire before our eyes if it manages to take hold and spread in one of the highly vaccinated countries that have used the better vaccines. We know that Moderna is already in the process of tweaking its vaccine and no doubt other manufactures are doing the same, we have a very short waiting game now to see which way this goes.

[onthedarkside]

A post linking to a non-credible,"questionable source" website has been removed, along with ensuing replies.

 

[dallen52]

However, as of press time, not a single case of Omicron had been detected in Thailand. Meanwhile, authorities and vaccine manufacturers around the world have been quick to respond to Omicron’s presence.

 

 

to say they have known about this strain 12 months.

and to say that the vaccine companies are responding, is rubbish.

 

They have said 100 days to tweak the vaccine to the latest (12 months old) level.

[ThailandRyan]

7 minutes ago, dallen52 said:

However, as of press time, not a single case of Omicron had been detected in Thailand. Meanwhile, authorities and vaccine manufacturers around the world have been quick to respond to Omicron’s presence.

 

 

to say they have known about this strain 12 months.

and to say that the vaccine companies are responding, is rubbish.

 

They have said 100 days to tweak the vaccine to the latest (12 months old) level.

Can you be a little more specific with your post on how and why?

[zzaa09]

18 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

Can you be a little more specific with your post on how and why?

How about: The usual displays of panic, angst and over reaction regarding things we know little of. 

[placnx]

9 hours ago, Jeffr2 said:

A trillion dollar industry for good reason.  Trying to save the lives of millions, which they've already done.  We're lucky they were already getting ramped up form something like this.  It's been predicted for some time.

Considering the trillions of costs to society, the cost of vaccinating people is a rational expense. Indeed, the wealthy countries should be making much more vaccine to get the poor countries vaccinated.

[ThailandRyan]

2 hours ago, Tonypandy said:

Not quite, the flu and cold industry is worth around 18 billion, way short of the trillions you imagined 

so all of the over the counter medications including cough drops, nasal sprays and so on are a drop in the bucket as well....

[ThailandRyan]

13 minutes ago, zzaa09 said:

How about: The usual displays of panic, angst and over reaction regarding things we know little of. 

So where were you going with your view as you still have me confused.  What you posted to my quote is just the daily reaction from the world.  Are you indicating that Thailand is not on board?

Edited November 29, 2021 by ThailandRyan

[Tracyb]

The government should stay focused on providing vaccine and boosters to everyone.  Reduce the incidence of hospitalizations, help everyone build immunity, restore confidence, open businesses, effectively screen arrivals into the country and allow only fully vaxxed folks to join us.

 

Educate. Vaccinate. Eradicate.

Edited November 29, 2021 by Tracyb