Thais more likely to be tested for Covid-19 than other ASEAN countriesThe Thaiger

People in Thailand are more likely to be tested for Covid-19 than those in other Southeast Asia countries, according to a recent study by YouGov. The organisation, partnered with Institute of Global Health Innovation in London, focused on how the coronavirus pandemic affected 6 countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN.

Thais more likely to be tested for Covid-19 than other ASEAN countries | News by The Thaiger

Of all six ASEAN nations, the data shows that Thais are reportedly the most likely to have tested for COVID-19 in the past week, with a quarter, or 25%, saying they have done so. Though the nation recently went 100 days without any locally-transmitted cases, Thailand is stepping up Covid-19 testing and contact-tracing to prevent another wave of outbreak, after local DJ tested positive for the virus. The nation’s main airport, Suvarnabhumi International Airport, also unveiled rapid testing for international travellers in July. Indonesians are reportedly the second most likely to have been tested for COVID-19, with almost 2 in 10, or 18%, having done so in the past week. The nation currently requires mandatory testing for factory workers, and testing for intercity travel. However, the suggested high rates of testing in Indonesia could be due to the fact that the nation primarily uses rapid antibody tests, which has since been discouraged by the World Health Organisation. The third most tested in ASEAN is Vietnam, 16%, followed by Malaysia 9% and the Philippines 7%. Singaporeans are reportedly the least likely to be tested in ASEAN.

Thais more likely to be tested for Covid-19 than other ASEAN countries | News by The Thaiger

A possible explanation as to why Singaporeans are the least likely to be tested in ASEAN is that they are currently the least likely to be exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms. When asked if they had experienced dry cough, fever, loss of sense of smell, loss of sense or taste or shortness of breath, over 9 in 10, or 93%, reported they had not. Asymptomatic testing is strictly prohibited in the nation. Malaysians are the second least likely to have exhibited COVID-19 symptoms in the past week, with 9 in 10, 91%, reporting no symptoms. They are followed by Vietnam and the Philippines, both 88%, and Thailand at 85%. Indonesians are the most likely to be exhibiting symptoms in ASEAN at 84%.

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