By Orathai Sriring and Juarawee Kittisilpa
BANGKOK (Reuters) – Thailand plans to install 10,000 field-hospital beds in Bangkok, a health official said on Saturday, as the country strains to cope with a third wave of COVID-19 infections.
At least a dozen hospitals in the capital said they had stopped testing for the coronavirus as of Friday due to a lack of kits or capacity. Hospitals are reluctant to test because they must admit people if they test positive, authorities say.
“We aim to increase (field) hospital beds to 10,000 in no time, which should give the public confidence that we can still contain this round of outbreak,” Suksan Kittisupakorn, director-general of Thailand’s Medical Service Department, told reporters.
The current surge appeared to be the country’s worst yet, he said.
Thailand reported 789 new cases and one death on Saturday, taking the total number of infections to…
