1. As of 17 Aug 2021, Thailand administered a total of 24.6 million doses of vaccines. Yesterday, there were 518,118 doses of vaccine inoculated. In Bangkok, around 93.25 percent of people aged 60 and above and around 96.23 percent of people with 7 underlying diseases already received the first dose. Meanwhile the total percentage of all people in Bangkok who have received the first dose accumulated to 79 percent.

2. The number of new confirmed cases today is 20,515 cases. There are currently 207,553 active cases with 22,682 new recoveries and 312 new fatalities with accumulated total stands at 8,285.

3. The area with the highest number of new cases remain Bangkok with 4,154 new cases followed by Samut Sakhon (1,820 cases) Samut Prakarn (1,335 cases) Chonburi (1,206 cases) and Nonthaburi (756 cases).

4. The new measures 7+7 extension for Phuket Sandbox scheme started yesterday. Travelers who have completed their quarantine in Phuket for 7 days can travel to other tourist destinations in the Southern provinces of Thailand and quarantine for another 7 days before departing to other areas. They need to provide two RT-PCR tests with negative results and completed transfer form and can only make a hotel booking only for hotels in SHA+ programme for the 7-day extension. All travelling during the transfer will be transported by specific vehicles separated from other travelers. All travelers in the programme also need to have the 3rd RT-PCR test on day 12 or 13 and need a release from before they ca be allowed to travel to other parts of Thailand after 14 days.

5. On 16 August 2021, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital and the Faculty of Medicine at Chulalongkorn University announced a promising preliminary result from the Phase 1 clinical trial of the ChulaCOV-19 vaccine. The Phase 1 trial showed that the trial vaccine could help the body build a level of antibody response similar to the response of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The Phase 2 trial is expected to commence on 25 August. If all goes well, this vaccine will be available to the general public by April 2022.

6. The Department of Disease Control strongly suggested that everyone should follow the guideline for “Universal Prevention” The guideline is comprising of leave home only when necessary; keep 1-2 meters social distancing; wear surgical mask, together with cloth mask; wash hands before every meal and after using toilet; avoid touching mask or other parts of your face; the people in high-risk category, people aged over 60 years and people with 7 underlying conditions should avoid going outside; clean the surfaces regularly; do not share personal stuffs with others; eat well-cooked food and do not share meals with others; If there are feeling of signs of illness or risks of infection, regularly do testing with an Antigen Test Kit.

Full CCSA English briefing can be viewed here >>> https://www.facebook.com/thailandprd/videos/162294379317414/

Source: CCSA, Ministry of Public Health and Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA)