Environment: Disposables phased out
Starting today, disposable plastic food containers and tableware will be banned from public offices, schools and hospitals under a nationwide campaign of phasing out environmentally-hazardous materials. Cafeterias and shops of public-run organizations, schools and hospitals will stop using disposable plastic and styrofoam food containers and tableware to help reduce the volume of environmentally unfriendly garbage, Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) officials said. The officials called on the public to bring their own washable tableware to their work places to help reduce the amount of garbage. EPA Administrator Hau Lung-bin (郝龍斌) said that his agency has stepped up publicity on the ban and that it hopes the program will be carried out smoothly.
Health: Seniors to get free flu shots
Citizens over 65 years of age (all those born before Dec. 31, 1937) are entitled to receive free flu vaccinations at over 2,400 clinics, hospitals and local health bureaus nationwide as of today. The Department of Health says influenza will soon reach its peak as cooler weather arrives and the elderly are especially susceptible to the flu. Those eligible for the free shots should bring their ID cards or national health insurance cards to health-department-contracted clinics and hospitals or local health bureaus to get the shots. "The department has purchased 1.45 millions doses of vaccine this year and the number should be sufficient for this year's inoculations," said the department's deputy minister, Twu Shiing-jer (涂醒哲).
Foreign affairs: Taiwan extends condolences
The government is concerned about a Senegalese ferry boat disaster that occurred off the West African coast last Thursday, Minister of Foreign Affairs Eugene Chien said yesterday. "President Chen Shui-bian has expressed concern about the tragic accident," Chien said, adding that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has instructed the Taiwan Embassy in Dakar to extend its regards and condolences to the Senegalese government. Chien said MOFA has informed Senegalese authorities that Taiwan is willing to assist in disaster-recovery efforts. According to wire service reports, a Senegalese state-owned ferry, with 1,034 passengers and crew members on board, capsized in stormy seas off the Gambian coast last Thursday.
Health: Professionals push WHO bid
Taiwanese medical professionals based in France and Germany resolved Sunday to establish an alliance of their own in Europe to accelerate Taiwan's entry into the World Health Organization (WHO). Medical practitioner Chang Liang-tze (張良子) and pharmacist Huang Mei-feng (黃梅芬), both based in Germany, and physicians Wang En-nan (王恩南) and Shih Lung (施龍), both based in France, jointly sponsored a meeting in Paris Sunday to announce the decision to establish the Taiwan Medical Professionals Alliance in Europe, aimed exclusively at facilitating Taiwan's entry to the WHO. The Taiwan Medical Professionals Alliance in Europe is expected to establish branches around the continent to exert influence on the WHO and the European Parliament in order to gain support for Taiwan's admittance to the health group.
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