The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on Tuesday rejected a rumor that government-funded influenza vaccinations were delayed this year because vaccines had been “snatched up” by China.
Government-funded flu shots are to be available from Nov. 15, later than previous years.
There was a rumor that local health centers said the reason for the delay was because China had taken the vaccines, and that the program could even be delayed for another month, the centers said.
Calling the rumor “ridiculous,” the centers said that government-funded quadrivalent vaccines would be available from Nov. 15 and administered in phases.
CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said that he has not heard of China importing flu vaccines, as it produces them domestically.
Taiwan’s government-funded vaccinations are supplied by domestic vaccine maker Adimmune Corp (國光生物科技) and French pharmaceutical firm Sanofi, which has not been affected by China, Lo said.
As government-funded flu shots are available from Nov. 15 and out-of-pocket vaccinations began on Oct. 22, some parents of preschoolers are worried that their children might not receive the government-funded one in time or that the vaccines would have run out by the second phase when young children are eligible, Lo said, adding that another of their concerns is whether the out-of-pocket vaccines are of better quality.
This year, the government-funded and out-of-pocket vaccinations are both quadrivalent vaccines that went through the same inspection process, and would have the same effect, he said.
The CDC estimates that about 1.14 million preschoolers must be vaccinated this season, including about 500,000 infants between the ages of six months and three years.
The centers said that 6.08 million government-funded flu vaccines have been procured this year, including 4.13 million for children over the age of three and 1.95 million for infants older than six months, so according to the vaccination rate of previous years, the number of vaccines prepared for this year would be enough.
Lo said that the centers forecast that the peak flu season would be in January next year and urged people who are eligible for the government-funded vaccination to be inoculated before then.
People who spread false information that undermines social security could be sentenced to three days in jail or face a fine of up to NT$30,000 under to the Social Order Maintenance Act (社會秩序維護法), the centers said.
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