ID :
337877
Wed, 08/13/2014 - 13:27
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Thailand adds Ebola as hazardous infectious disease

BANGKOK, August 13 (TNA) - The Thai Ministry of Public Health declares the Ebola virus disease (EVD) the sixth hazardous infectious disease in the country, which requires reports to authorities on every found case. Permanent Secretary for Public Health Dr. Narong Sahamethapat told journalists that the declaration was signed on Wednesday and will take effect one day after it is published in the Royal Gazette. Dr. Narong acknowledged that EVD has been, thus, included in Thailand's list of hazardous infectious diseases, in addition to smallpox, yellow fever, meningococcal meningitis, cholera and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). Dr. Narong said the Thai Ministry of Public Health has also declared Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia and Nigeria's Lagos City contagious areas, aimed to warn people to be on high alert against those entering Thailand from the affected areas, especially during their first 21-day entry, although travels to the areas have not yet been banned. According to the senior official, 483 people arrived in Thailand from the EVD-prone areas over the past 79 days, but all of them remained healthy. Meanwhile, the Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) reported that there have been 1,848 EVD patients so far, 1,013 of them have died, noting, however, that the EVD fatality rate has already dropped to 60 per cent, thanks to experienced medical personnel and more precautions now.(TNA)

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