Bangkok imposes restrictions as cases rise

Thailand on Sunday reported 2,438 new cases and 11 deaths, as Bangkok braced for the closure of entertainment and sport venues as part of measures health care workers say are not enough to relieve overburdened hospitals.

Thailand on Sunday reported 2,438 new cases and 11 deaths, as Bangkok braced for the closure of entertainment and sport venues as part of measures health care workers say are not enough to relieve overburdened hospitals. The Thai capital has seen a rapid rise in infections since early April, and its governor, Aswin Kwanmuang, announced the two-week closures starting Monday. They include gyms, public parks, zoos, exhibition and meeting centers, nurseries and boxing stadiums. Those not wearing masks in public face penalties. Shortages of hospital beds, stemming from a regulation that everyone testing positive for COVID-19 must be treated in a hospital, are causing frustration. Media reported two people died in their homes after they were turned down by hospitals.

Some health workers are calling for a general lockdown, saying the government's hospital admission policies have exhausted the system. The Thoracic Society of Thailand wrote an open letter demanding the government restrict the movement of people to reduce the number of new cases.