CCSA rejects medical advice to lock down Bangkok as daily infections near 1,000
Health officials have rejected a proposal from medics to lock down Bangkok, where Covid-19 is now spreading at a rate of almost 1,000 infections per day.
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has decided that serious outbreaks at construction camps and other city venues can be contained with local measures, CSSA spokesman Taweesin Visanuyothin said on Wednesday.
In addition, locking down Bangkok may spur migrant workers to leave and potentially spread the virus to their home provinces, he added.
Instead, the CSSA will maintain its “bubble and seal” policy of localised measures to contain the contagion and stop it spreading from hotspots, said the spokesman.
Bangkok logged 956 new cases on Wednesday, driven by serious outbreaks in constructions camps, slums and densely populated neighbourhoods.
Meanwhile, medical facilities are running out of room to treat the rising number of patients in the capital and neighbouring provinces.
Most beds for “yellow” and “red” category patients (moderate and severe symptoms) are now occupied, according to the Department of Medical Services.
The CCSA is seeking to free up bed space for severe cases by shifting green-category patients to hospitels. Bangkok authorities are coordinating with hotels in a bid to open more hospital beds.