Govt 'ready' for second Covid wave
published : 1 Sep 2020 at 06:55
newspaper section: News
writer: Post Reporters
The Ministry of Public Health has assured the public it is fully prepared if Thailand has to face a second outbreak of Covid-19 infections in the wake of cases reappearing in several countries.
Deputy secretary-general of the Food and Drug Administration, Dr Surachoke Tangwiwat confirmed there are adequate supplies of medicines, pharmaceuticals, personal protective equipment (PPE) and N95 masks for all hospitals nationwide.
The doctor said currently Thailand had 629,122 pills of the antiviral drug Favipiravir for 8,900 patients, Remdesivir reserves for 33 patients, more than 2.3 million N95 masks for 15,000 patients, over 1.16 million PPE suits for 7,700 patients and 45.44 million surgical masks for 100 days.
There are 45 face mask factories with the capacity to manufacture 3.41 million face masks a day, he said.
Specialist of the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO), Nanthakarn Suwanpidokkul said the GPO now had 590,200 pills of Favipiravir and was in the process of developing the medicine itself. It was expected that the GPO's Favipiravir would be registered mid-2021, she said.
The GPO and Biotech are collaborating to conduct research on raw materials for the production of Favipiravir. The GPO is also working with many sectors in Thailand and other countries to develop and produce vaccines.
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported a single new case of the novel coronavirus on Monday, a 29-year-old British woman, raising the accumulated total in Thailand to 3,412.
The woman tested positive for Covid-19 on her second test during state quarantine.
