Thailand: 96% of over 3K COVID-19 patients recover

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ANKARA (AA) - Thailand on Tuesday reported one new death and one more case of coronavirus as nearly 96% of all confirmed cases have recovered, an official said.

Thailand has recorded a total of 3,083 coronavirus cases and death toll of 58, with 2,966 or 96% of all cases recovered, while 59 are undergoing treatment in hospitals, said Natapanu Nopakun, the deputy director-general of the Department of Information, addressing a news briefing in Bangkok.

The official said an 80-year-old male, with a history of other diseases, lost his life today. The new case was a man, 32, who returned home from Saudi Arabia, and entered the country through Malaysia.

The Buddhist-majority country’s Public Health Ministry said the COVID-19 situation is “improving in Thailand, with 65 provinces reporting no new cases in a month."

But it added: “The situation is not stable enough, so the government continues to screen people returning from abroad and is proactive in testing suspected cases.”

The official noted that although the number of COVID-19 cases in Thailand was relatively low, there are two main groups among the infected people: Thai nationals returning from other countries, and people who had close contact with previous cases.

The ministry also said the average age of COVID-19 patients in Thailand has been 37, with the oldest 97, and the youngest a 1-month-old baby.

Thailand has also planned to completely open the country from July 1.

All business and economic activities will be resumed as lockdown curbs will be lifted in a month from now on.

The government had imposed a state of emergency in April to fight the pandemic, and restrictions have gradually been eased.

People have also resumed visiting temples, but they continue to take measures, including social distancing, temperature checks, and wearing masks.

The pandemic has killed nearly 376,000 people worldwide, with over 6.28 million confirmed cases, while recoveries have surpassed 2.7 million, according to figures compiled by the US’ Johns Hopkins University.