The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued a phase 3 alert yesterday after the first domestic infection of A(H1N1) influenza was confirmed. Two more imported cases were also confirmed, bringing the total number to nine.
News of the first domestic case led Department of Health (DOH) Minister Yeh Ching-chuan (葉金川) to change his mind on accompanying President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) to Central America. Yeh said he would remain in Taipei to oversee epidemic prevention.
“I realized that it was important for me to stay to comfort the public and assure them that everything is OK. Although it would make no difference if I stay or went, I decided to stay,” he said.
PHOTO: CNA
Department of Health Deputy Minister Sung Yen-jen (宋晏仁) will join Ma on the trip instead, he said.
The epidemic alert was raised to the third stage — yellow — meaning imported cases have caused a second wave of infections, CDC spokesman Shih Wen-yi (施文儀) said yesterday.
More people with A(H1N1) could enter Taiwan or were already here, so the chances of a community epidemic were increasing, but there was no need to worry, he said.
“We have done a good job in terms of fighting the virus so far and will continue to do so,” Shih said.
He said case No. 7 was a 40-year-old woman who had been infected by contact with a mother and daughter who were confirmed as cases four and six on Friday.
The mother and her five-year-old daughter were infected during a trip to the Philippines from May 16 to May 20, Shih said.
They later attended a dinner party at the home of the woman identified as case No. 7, where they stayed for six hours.
Case No. 7’s husband, who has not developed any flu symptoms, has been told to stay home and to take flu medication, Shih said.
Shih rebuffed concerns over a local epidemic.
“This was the first patient to be infected domestically. So we will hold off talk of ‘local epidemics’ for now,” Shih said.
The two other new cases are Taiwanese graduate students who arrived from San Francisco on Saturday on EVA Airways flight BR007, Shih said.
The man and the woman were taken to the Hsinwu branch of Taoyuan General Hospital by a taxi driver, he said.
“They did not show any signs of a fever so they were not screened at the airport,” he said.
“On their way home, they told the taxi driver that they had returned from the US and they were feeling uncomfortable. The driver dropped them off at the hospital,” Shih said.
The pair are studying at a San Francisco area university and came back home for the summer.
Shih said the pair said they had a fever last Tuesday and Wednesday but did not have a fever when they landed in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
They had worn facemasks during their flight, he said, and sat in seats 23K and 23H.
Shih encouraged passengers who had sat near those seats to contact CDC officials by calling 1922.
The taxi driver and EVA cabin crews were contacted and have begun a 10-day drug regime.
In related news, Yeh told lawmakers on the Social Welfare and Environmental Hygiene Committee yesterday morning that the WHO would separate Taiwan’s confirmed cases and register them under the name “Chinese Taipei” on its Web site.
“It is my understanding that the WHO separated cases from Taiwan from China’s figures yesterday,” he said.
“I believe ‘Chinese Taipei’ will be seen on its latest statistics, which will be made public at 4pm today,” Yeh said.
As of press time, the changes Yeh mentioned had appeared on the WHO’s Web site but its figures had not been updated.
Yeh also told lawmakers that Taiwan has ordered 6 tonnes of Shikimic acid, a key ingredient in Tamiflu, the primary drug used to treat swine flu.
This would allow the government to produce 1 tonne of Tamiflu, enough doses for 1 million people, he said.
The government would also procure 10 million doses of vaccine, he said.
“We are planning to buy 2.5 million doses from foreign manufacturers. Another 7.5 million doses will be produced by local manufacturers,” he said.
Commenting on his clash with students protesting Taiwan’s status at the WHA meeting in Geneva last week, Yeh said he did not show enough EQ (emotional intelligence) in Geneva, but he would not apologize because he had done nothing wrong.
“What I did in Geneva was to introduce Taiwan to the world. What is wrong with that?” he said.
He lost his temper with the students because he had a little to drink, he said.
The minister added that he did not want to discuss the incident again.
“It is not worth discussing. And I want to forget about it as soon as possible,” he said.
He told lawmakers that joining the WHA as “Taiwan” or “Republic of China” was the goal, but “Chinese Taipei” would always be the bottom line.
“At least, we had the chance to contribute during an international event,” Yeh said.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY CNA
CALL FOR SUPPORT: President William Lai called on lawmakers across party lines to ensure the livelihood of Taiwanese and that national security is protected President William Lai (賴清德) yesterday called for bipartisan support for Taiwan’s investment in self-defense capabilities at the christening and launch of two coast guard vessels at CSBC Corp, Taiwan’s (台灣國際造船) shipyard in Kaohsiung. The Taipei (台北) is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels, and the Siraya (西拉雅) is the Coast Guard Administration’s (CGA) first-ever ocean patrol vessel, the government said. The Taipei is the fourth and final ship of the Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessels with a displacement of about 4,000 tonnes, Lai said. This ship class was ordered as a result of former president Tsai Ing-wen’s (蔡英文) 2018
‘SECRETS’: While saying China would not attack during his presidency, Donald Trump declined to say how Washington would respond if Beijing were to take military action US President Donald Trump said that China would not take military action against Taiwan while he is president, as the Chinese leaders “know the consequences.” Trump made the statement during an interview on CBS’ 60 Minutes program that aired on Sunday, a few days after his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in South Korea. “He [Xi] has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘we would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in the interview. However, he repeatedly declined to say exactly how Washington would respond in
WARFARE: All sectors of society should recognize, unite, and collectively resist and condemn Beijing’s cross-border suppression, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said The number of Taiwanese detained because of legal affairs by Chinese authorities has tripled this year, as Beijing intensified its intimidation and division of Taiwanese by combining lawfare and cognitive warfare, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday. MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) made the statement in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Puma Shen (沈柏洋) about the government’s response to counter Chinese public opinion warfare, lawfare and psychological warfare. Shen said he is also being investigated by China for promoting “Taiwanese independence.” He was referring to a report published on Tuesday last week by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency,
‘ADDITIONAL CONDITION’: Taiwan will work with like-minded countries to protect its right to participate in next year’s meeting, the foreign ministry said The US will “continue to press China for security arrangements and protocols that safeguard all participants when attending APEC meetings in China,” a US Department of State spokesperson said yesterday, after Beijing suggested that members must adhere to its “one China principle” to participate. “The United States insists on the full and equal participation of all APEC member economies — including Taiwan — consistent with APEC’s guidelines, rules and established practice, as affirmed by China in its offer to host in 2026,” the unnamed spokesperson said in response to media queries about China putting a “one China” principle condition on Taiwan’s
RSS