618 Thai medical workers infected despite getting Sinovac jabs
Authorities considering giving booster shots to raise immunity
BANGKOK: Thailand's Health Ministry said yesterday more than 600 medical workers who received two doses of China's Sinovac vaccine have been infected with Covid-19, as authorities weigh giving booster doses to raise immunity.
Of the 677,348 health workers who received two doses of Sinovac, 618 became infected, Health Ministry data from April to July showed.
One nurse has died and another medical worker is in critical condition.
An expert panel has recommended a third dose to trigger immunity for medical workers who are at risk, senior health official Sopon Iamsirithawon told a news briefing yesterday.
"This will be a different vaccine, either viral vector AstraZeneca or an mRNA vaccine, which Thailand will be receiving in the near term," he said, adding that the recommendation will be considered today.
The announcement comes as the country reported a record high of 9,418 community infections yesterday.
On Saturday, authorities reported a record of 91 coronavirus fatalities.
Thailand has reported a total of 336,371 infections and 2,711 deaths.
DONATION
The majority of Thailand's medical and front-line workers were given Sinovac's shots after February with the viral vector vaccine from AstraZeneca arriving in June.
Thailand is expecting a donation of 1.5 million Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines from the United States later this month and has ordered 20 million doses that will be delivered after October.
Neighbouring Indonesia, which has also relied heavily on Sinovac, said on Friday it would give the Moderna vaccine as boosters to medical workers.
Meanwhile, Thai beauty queens who took part in a pageant last month could face criminal charges for not wearing masks, police warned yesterday, after a cluster of 22 infections emerged from the event.
Thirteen contestants and nine others associated with the Miss Grand Samut Sakhon pageant, which was held at a Bangkok venue late last month, have tested positive for the virus, officers said.
"There are likely to be many people involved in the pageant including contestants who violated rules and regulations," Deputy Commissioner Piya Tawichai of the metropolitan police said in Bangkok yesterday. - REUTERS, AFP