Dr Yong lays out ‘new normal’ as Thailand moves into post-Covid era

Back in 2020, everyone was hoping that vaccines would end a pandemic that was killing up to 5 per cent of those infected, Dr Yong Poovorawan said on Friday.

However, those hopes proved to be too optimistic, especially with the emergence of new vaccine-blunting variants.

"After the Covid-19 vaccines were rolled out in 2021, we found that like influenza jabs they do not offer 100 per cent protection as they cannot eliminate the viral spread,” Dr Yong wrote on Facebook.

"Meanwhile, the efficiency of each vaccine altered depending on each virus variant."

He pointed out that people can be infected with Covid-19 even after receiving their third or fourth jabs or gaining natural immunity via a previous infection.

Despite an apparent drop in the severity of the disease, Covid-19 was still spreading rapidly, he added.

Thailand recorded 23,379 new cases and 92 fatalities on Friday. However, the fatality rate has dropped from 1-2 per cent to 0.1-0.2 per cent, with most deaths occurring among the vulnerable group – the elderly, and people with chronic diseases who have not been fully vaccinated.

"Fully vaccinated people can be infected and spread the virus but are likely to develop only mild symptoms," he said. "Children are likely to develop milder symptoms, except those with chronic conditions."

He added that pregnant women who get jabbed will provide their babies with immunity against the virus for the first month of life.

People must now coexist with Covid-19 and accept the virus as just another respiratory disease, Yong said. Vaccine passports, disease investigation and timelines would soon be a thing of the past.

"We should focus on vulnerable people, such as the elderly, children up to the age of two and people with chronic diseases or low immunity, as Covid-19 presents similar dangers to this group similar as influenza," he said.

Reopening the country is necessary, he added, pointing out that tourists account for just 50 to 60 new cases per day in Thailand compared to 50,000 to 60,000 domestic cases.

He added that visitors should be screened methods via rapid antigen tests (ATKs) only.

Thailand scrapped mandatory pre-arrival RT-PCR tests for tourists on Friday (April) but they must still take an RT-PCR test on arrival.

"When Covid-19 vaccines cannot protect people from infection, medicines will become necessary, so we are developing effective medications to protect people, especially the vulnerable," Yong said.

He also hoped that children would be able to return to school next semester.