Woman tests positive for Covid-19, bringing total to 44

Health officials and medical staff across the country have been asked to be more vigilant in responding to Covid-19 after another case of the virus was confirmed.
The case was confirmed by the National Taskforce for Covid-19 Prevention and Control and brings the total number of recorded infections to 44.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Deputy Head of the taskforce, Associate Prof. Dr Phouthone Muongpak, said the latest person to test positive for the virus was a 29-year-old Lao woman who returned to Laos from Malaysia.

The woman arrived at Wattay International Airport in Vientiane Sunday morning where she was tested for Covid-19 and taken to a quarantine facility before testing positive later that day. She was isolated and admitted to Mittaphab Hospital. The 32 people who shared a bus with her have all tested negative for the virus.
Elsewhere, people have alleged that Lao workers illegally entering Thataeng district in Xekong province from neighbouring countries were carrying the virus and had traveled on buses, but the Taskforce dismissed these reports as rumours.
Reports that Thataeng authorities had locked down the district with no one allowed to enter or leave were also said to be false.
District officials set up a task force to investigate the reports and said the rumor spread after task force members visited the area to monitor border crossings. The taskforce has urged people to trust information sourced only from reliable and official sources so they are not deceived by rumours.
Social media users may face legal action if they post and share false information that causes harm to others, according to the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism. The ministry is advising everyone to protect themselves against the virus by limiting contact with people suffering from acute respiratory infections.
Officials are further beefing up preparedness to respond to the Covid-19 virus.
Two cases of Covid-19 were confirmed by the taskforce in the north and south of Laos on Friday, after a Lao woman and a Chinese national tested positive for the virus.
To date there have been 44 known cases of Covid-19 in Laos, although no one has died or been seriously ill.

By Phetphoxay Sengpaseuth
(Latest Update January 26, 2021)