Asean sees a drop in new Covid-19 cases
The number of Covid-19 cases in Southeast Asia crossed 9.39 million, with 76,446 new cases reported on Monday, lower than Sunday’s tally of 81,948. The region also saw 1,941 additional deaths, a decrease from Monday’s 2,549, taking total coronavirus deaths to 208,115.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo ordered that the price of the Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) tests should be cut to a range between 450,000 and 550,000 rupiah (THB1,037-1,268) from the previous maximum of 900,000 rupiah set by the Health Ministry.
The government decided to cut RT-PCR test prices following heated debates that the tests were considered too expensive.
Widodo also ordered that the results of the tests must be available within 24 hours as the country needs to speedily tackle the raging virus.
Meanwhile, the Philippines reported 18,332 new cases and 151 deaths on Monday, bringing cumulative cases in that country to 1,857,646 patients and a total 31,961 deaths so far.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the Public Health Ministry and the Fiscal Policy Office to immediately distribute allowances and “hazard” salaries to front-line medics after several doctors and nurses threatened to quit their jobs due to delayed payments.
