Visitors will once again have to isolate themselves in state quarantine upon arrival if Covid-19 cases fueled by the Omicron variant pose a public health threat.

 

Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and the Covid-19 task force said this morning they will weigh scrapping the so-called Test & Go test-on-arrival scheme for international travelers after logging 63 lab-confirmed cases of the fast-spreading variant. Twenty more possible infections are awaiting conclusive results.

 

That would mean a return to the sandbox and state quarantine systems in place prior to November. Under current rules, travelers must submit to PCR tests upon arrival and then remain in their hotel rooms until they are given the green light.

 

Meanwhile, New Year’s Eve events may still go ahead as planned, with their fate up to local authorities.

 

The article originally appeared on Coconuts Bangkok