BANGKOK, Aug 20 (TNA) – The total COVID-19 cases in the country exceeded 1 million as it logged 19,851 new cases and 240 new fatalities over the past 24 hours.
The Public Health Ministry reported that the total cases rose to 1,009,710 and the death toll went up to 8,826 showing the mortality rate of 0.87%.
The 19,871 new cases included 19,526 among general people and 325 prison inmates. On Aug 19, 5,388 patients were seriously ill and 1,161 of them were placed on ventilators.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said that the Department of Disease Control signed a contract with Pfizer to buy 10 million more doses of the COVID-19 vaccine made by the company.
Consequently Thailand’s procurement of the Pfizer vaccine rose from 20 million doses to 30 million doses. They would be gradually delivered in the fourth quarter of this year, he said. (TNA)