Thailand approves quarantine waiver for tourists, orders more vaccines

BANGKOK - Thai authorities on Friday agreed to allow foreigners inoculated against the coronavirus to travel to its biggest holiday island without undergoing quarantine, and announced a new order for five million more doses of AstraZeneca's vaccine.

With arrival numbers plummeting this past year, tourism-reliant Thailand is racing to secure vaccines for its population and reopen the country to foreigners in a pilot project for vaccine passports. "If we can inoculate 50% to 60% of the population we can open the country safely and move the economy and tourism forward," senior health official Kiattiphum Wongraijit said.