Thailand approves extra US$433 million for coronavirus frontliners
FILE PHOTO: A government worker sprays disinfectant on a street amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Bangkok, Thailand, January 4, 2021. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun
BANGKOK : Thailand's cabinet on Tuesday approved an additional 14.5 billion baht (US$433.2 million) in financial support, mainly for medical workers, as the Southeast Asian country struggles to deal with its biggest COVID-19 outbreak to date.
Of the total, about 12.7 billion baht will be offered to medical workers, while the remaining 1.88 billion will be for other officials assisting with public vaccinations, government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said in a statement.
The government has approved about 322 billion baht in relief measures since the latest outbreak began in April. It has accounted for most of the country's total 795,951 cases and 6,588 deaths.
(US$1 = 33.47 baht)
(Reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat and Satawasin Staporncharnchai; Writing by Orathai Sriring; Editing by Martin Petty)
