Thai Health Officials Intensify Checks For Coronavirus Before Lunar New Year - Reports

Thai Health Officials Intensify Checks For Coronavirus Before Lunar New Year - Reports

Thailand's Ministry of Public Health has introduced the highest level of screening and precautionary measures at the country's airports and hospitals to monitor the spread of coronavirus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in late January, Thai media reported on Saturday.

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th January, 2020) Thailand's Ministry of Public Health has introduced the highest level of screening and precautionary measures at the country's airports and hospitals to monitor the spread of coronavirus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in late January, Thai media reported on Saturday. Thailand's Ministry of Public Health has introduced the highest level of screening and precautionary measures at the country's airports and Thailand's Ministry of Public Health has introduced the highest level of screening and precautionary measures at the country's airports and hospitals to monitor the spread of coronavirus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in late January, Thai media reported on Saturday.hospitals to monitor the spread of coronavirus, which originated in the Chinese city of Wuhan, ahead of the Lunar New Year holidays in late January, Thai media reported on Saturday.

According to the Bangkok Post newspaper, Thai health officials introduced the measures as many Chinese tourists are planning to visit Thailand during the upcoming holidays. There are up to nine daily direct flights from Wuhan to Thailand, carrying between 1,200 and 1,400 tourists, the newspaper reported, citing data from the Department of Disease Control.

Public health authority teams will screen passengers arriving at six Thai airports that have direct connections to Wuhan, permanent secretary for the Ministry of Public Health Sukhum Kanchanapimai told reporters at a press conference.

The ministry has also put state-owned and private hospitals on high alert, and established a hotline to inform officials of any further cases of infection, the newspaper reported.

Two Chinese tourists have so far been found infected with coronavirus in Thailand, the newspaper stated. Laboratory tests are still ongoing to determine whether a Thai citizen is also carrying the deadly virus.

On Monday, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a statement confirming the presence of coronavirus in Thailand, after a traveler from Wuhan was identified with the disease on January 8. A second case of infection was confirmed by Thai health officials on Thursday. WHO is working with Thai officials to manage the spread of the disease which has killed two people in Wuhan as of Friday.

The new virus was reported in Wuhan in early January. Those infected reportedly display symptoms typical of pneumonia and other acute respiratory diseases. The outbreak was confirmed to be that of a new type of coronavirus last week and airports across the world have stepped up measures to monitor passengers for the disease.