New home-treatment service marks 4-month countdown to endemic in Thailand

SATURDAY, February 26, 2022

THE NATION

A new Covid-19 home-treatment service will launch on Tuesday (March 1), as Thailand begins a four-month transition from pandemic to endemic, the Public Health Ministry has announced.

After testing positive, people will be prescribed Favipiravir, Fah Talai Jone, or antipyretic, cough syrup or decongestant, according to the severity of their symptoms, the ministry said on Friday.

The new system will enable people who test positive via ATKs to treat themselves at home rather than visiting medical facilities.

The system is part of Thailand’s plan to manage Covid-19 as a general communicable disease or endemic, starting in four months time, according to ministry permanent secretary Dr Kiatiphum Wongrajit.

The transition to an endemic would mark the lifting of most restrictions currently in place.

The home-treatment system has already been rolled out in Chiang Mai and Phuket, Kiatiphum said. Under the system, which is also being trialled in Bangkok by Siriraj Hospital, patients are treated at home, where they must isolate and avoid travelling to reduce chances of spreading the virus.

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At-risk people who test positive for Covid-19 are also eligible for home treatment. However, those at higher risk due to underlying conditions will still be treated at medical facilities, according to doctors.