Delta variant: The situation in Asia
Much less affected so far than Western countries by the Covid-19 pandemic, Southeast Asia is facing a major wave of contamination, because of the Delta variant. Thanks to this article Expatmedicare takes a look of the pandemic in Asia and in particular on the Delta variant.
Pandemic figures
Daily new confirmed COVID-19 cases per million people *
For real time figures here
Looking at the figures we can see that Indonesia is the most affected country with more than 42,000 new cases recorded on July 14, 2021. However, the rapid spread of the variant Delta affect lot of others country.
For example to fight against the spread of the Delta variant, Thailand has reinstated certain restrictions. Like the closure of bars and restaurants as well as a curfew.
Much more contagious than the first strain of Covid-19, the delta variant has a strong impact in Southeast Asia. Hard hit by the effects of the Delta variant, many of these countries had not prepared upstream, which explains the very rapid spread.
Indeed, Asia was relatively spared in 2020, and therefore did not anticipate a second wave much more virulent. A situation linked in particular to the slowness of vaccination campaigns.
The situation in Asia
After Indonesia, nearly 9,000 cases have been reported in Thailand and Malaysia, a record rate for both countries. The Thai authorities had to take a strong decision in order to fight against the spread of the Delta variant. By blocking travel between regions and prohibiting gatherings, for example.
In neighboring countries the situation is no better. Indeed, Burma, Cambodia and Vietnam have all three also identified a record number of contamination. More cases have been recorded there in the past five days than in the first 14 months of the pandemic.
Singapore appears to be one of the few untouched countries in the region. The authorities are preparing to relax health restrictions in the city-state where nearly 50% of the population is now immune. As well as China, which continues its drastic measures to remove the pandemic from the territory.
Prevention
Despite a higher rate of contamination of the Delta variant compared to the 1st strain of COVID-19. The barrier gestures are still as effective and necessary to fight against this 2nd wave.
-Wash your hands regularly (soap or hydroalcoholic solution)
-Wear a mask
-Respect a distance of 1m to 1.5m between peoples
-Avoid groupings
The best weapon: vaccination?
All the information on vaccines here
Despite a dispute over vaccines, some studies show the effectiveness of vaccines against viruses. Although the effectiveness is less against the Delta variant.
Several Asian countries have therefore started massive vaccination campaigns, and some of them have also started to vaccinate expatriates. The mRNA vaccines will be available towards the end of the year.
However, at present the low detection rate in the most populous countries of Asia, namely Indonesia and the Philippines, surely conceals the real number of cases, while in Burma, the number of tests and vaccine has dropped since the February 1 military coup.
In Indonesia and Thailand, only 5% of the population is fully vaccinated. The figure drops to 2.7% for the Philippines.
Faced with the surge in cases and concerns about the effectiveness of locally offered vaccines, Thailand will accept mRNA vaccines later this year.
The price
As vaccines all have different storage technologies and methods, prices vary greatly between each vaccine. For example, messenger RNA vaccines should be stored at extremely cold temperatures (between -70 ° C and 5 ° C). So they are therefore more expensive.
How to be refund?
The costs will be automatically reimbursed if you have CFE (What is CFE ?).
If you have offshore or local coverage. Check if care can be provided in France and if coverage for vaccination costs is present.
Finally, if you do not have any insurance, reimbursement will be impossible.
How to find this insurance
The easiest way is to compare all the offers one by one, but it’s not an insurance professional who wants to. The waste of time is considerable.
To help you hire a broker is often the most advantageous solution. Indeed, he can provide you with sound advice to guide you on the right insurance.
Our team of experts can help you with this process, and help you find the perfect insurance for your needs. In addition our perfect knowledge of Hong Kong, thanks to our
he representative office on site, allows us to stay informed as much as possible and to be as close as possible to help you. Contact us!
You can also read our article which lists the qualities of good insurance here
