COVID-19 response: Gov’t demands expansion of quarantine spaces for entrants

Pay-to-stay quarantine areas are designated hotels and other accommodation facilities for Vietnamese and foreigners from abroad.

Local authorities are requested to coordinate with the Ministry of Health and other relevant ministries to manage quarantine work in a safe and effective manner.

Thanks to early and drastic measures, Viet Nam has gone 64 consecutive days without a single community transmission case.

As of early November 5, the nation confirmed 1,207 cases of Covid-19, including 691 local infections.

Among the total, 1,069 have recovered and exited hospitals while 35 others have been reported dead.

As many as 15,137 people are placed under quarantine or medical surveillance across the country, of these 196 at hospitals, 13,959 at concentrated quarantine camps, and 982 at places of residence.  

Though the Government allowed the resumption of international commercial flights, borders remain closed for foreign tourists.

Currently, only holders of diplomatic or official passports, experts, managers, skilled workers, and investors, their family members, international students, and family members of Vietnamese citizens are allowed to enter Viet Nam.

Generally, people fly into the country on either humanitarian or commercial flights. The former will be quarantined at military-run centralized facilities for VND120,000 ($5) a day; and the latter have to register specific addresses and bookings in designated hotels before boarding flights to Viet Nam.

As of August 5, 207 hotels in 25 localities were designated as paid quarantine facilities nationwide.

Recently, HCMC allowed another 14 hotels to serve as paid quarantine facilities to meet the growing demand, taking its total count to 24.

Most of pay-to-stay services are 2-5 star hotels, with an average price of VND1.2 to VND5 million ($51 to $215) per room per night, which does not include fees for shuttle services, laundry or other services./.

By Kim Anh