COVID finally arrived in Laos. For one year, Laos was able to keep COVID at bay, by carefully requiring quarantine for all arrivals into Laos. For one year, the cases of COVID in Laos were less than 50, with no community transmission. Then, Lao New Year 2021 (April 14-16) was celebrated in a more normal way, with some group parties, gatherings, and celebrations. A few people crossed illegally from Thailand to celebrate the New Year in Laos, and unknowingly brought COVID and community transmission with them. On April 22, Laos went into full lockdown, barriers went up, and community life halted. I am really glad they did, because although the lockdown is still in place and we have had over 1700 cases and 2 deaths since mid April 2021, the community transmission is not worse. Laos’s medical system is less robust than India’s, by far. If Laos were to suffer from COVID like India has, it would be a massive tragedy. The lockdown is still in effect, at least through June 4. However, now the lockdown is in zones, depending on whether there are active cases, tracing to active cases, etc. For southern Laos, we are able to move more freely within our own districts. Thank you to the Lao government and World Health Organization for keeping Laos protected!
