The Department of Medical Services warns that new COVID-19 cases of BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants doubled and will be increasing over the next month.
Dr Somsak Akksilp, director-general of the department, said that BA.4 and BA.5 cases at most hospitals under its jurisdiction doubled over the past two weeks.
They included cases at Rajavithi, Lerdsin and Nopparat Rajathanee hospitals. The facilities handled about 200 new cases, up from about 100 cases, a day, he said.
The management of the hospitals mobilized more medical personnel and raised the numbers of intensive care beds to help severely ill patients.
Dr Somsak admitted that BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants were spreading faster than the BA.2 sub-variant but officials concerned had not yet concluded if they were severer.
He said that BA.4 and BA.5 would be spreading faster in the next 3-4 weeks as people might see that people close to them were contracting the disease.
Health officials started to plan measures to cope with the situation a few weeks ago. They included the serious use of face masks at hospitals, quick inoculation for people, especially vulnerable people, and the opening of full-scale acute respiratory infection (ARI) clinics at hospitals, Dr Somsak said. (TNA)
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