The Center for Disease Control (CDC) is urging the public to vaccinate their children against polio, as the threat of poliovirus is considered high this year.
The WHO has announced, according to the CDC, that wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) has said that it considers the risk of international spread of the virus from Israel to be high.
The CDC also pointed out that Somalia and several other countries in East Africa are experiencing polio outbreaks this year, with South Sudan recently reporting the first three cases of WPV1 infection since 2009.
Taiwan has been declared by the WHO as a polio-free region since 2000, but the threat of poliovirus still remains. People who have not been fully vaccinated against the virus are at particularly high risk of infection.
Parents are advised to take the children to receive a total of five polio vaccination doses at the ages of two months, four months, six months, 18 months and finally at seven years (first grade in elementary school). Those who plan to travel to polio-affected regions are also advised by the agency to visit travel clinics for evaluation or immunization before the trip and to avoid bringing unvaccinated children to the regions.
The CDC says polio is an infectious disease and more than 95 percent of sufferers exhibit no, or no obvious, symptoms.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it