The Public Health Ministry raises its COVID-19 alert to Level 4 which means the closure of risky places and restriction on inter-provincial trips.
The ministry made the decision as the country logged 5,775 new COVID-19 cases and 11 new fatalities over the past 24 hours.
Dr Kiattiphum Wongrajit, permanent secretary for public health, said the new caseloads rose partly because the Omicron variant spread fast but did not cause a severe symptom and 95% of infected people were asymptomatic. If the number of patients increased, new fatalities could rise, he said.
To contain the disease, the Public Health Ministry would raise its COVID-19 alert from Level 3 to Level 4 that would result in the closure of risky places and the restriction of inter-provincial trips, he said.
More control measures would be likely because the disease spread fast after there had been parties in places with poor ventilation, religious gatherings and trips to native provinces, Dr. Kiattiphum said.
He asked people to monitor their health conditions for 14 days or conduct antigen tests every three days or weekly. If tests return positive, infected people can call 1330 to enter the treatment system of the government. (TNA)