The Executive Yuan has decided to increase the number of rooms at quarantine facilities from 1,500 to 2,000 as a pre-emptive measure amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a source said yesterday.
The 2,000 single rooms would be spread across 16 locations nationwide, including Taipei’s Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山國家公園) and Taoyuan’s Gueishan District (龜山), a government official said on condition of anonymity.
The rooms are adapted from employee training facilities owned by different government agencies and state-run enterprises, as well as military quarters, they said.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
Meanwhile, the number of rooms in quarantine hotels would also be increased from 8,000 to 15,000, after the Tourism Bureau negotiated with hoteliers possessing detached buildings, they said.
The government provides a daily subsidy of NT$2,000 for using a quarantine room, with NT$1,000 going to the person under quarantine and NT$1,000 to the hotelier, they said.
The Cabinet decided to increase quarantine facilities because some people have left their homes, despite being under quarantine, they said.
It is also a pre-emptive measure to ensure that there is enough space for people returning from China on charter flights, as well as migrant workers, they said.
The quarantine rooms are equipped with TVs and have Internet connectivity, they added.
Separately yesterday, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications said that, starting tomorrow, visitors to post offices would face a fine of NT$3,000 to NT$15,000 if they do not wear a mask after being asked to do so.
While post offices have been requiring people to wear masks and have their temperature taken before entering, some people have refused to comply and argued with office workers, the ministry said.
The fine, based on the Communicable Disease Control Act (傳染病防治法), was approved by the Central Epidemic Command Center on Friday, the ministry said.
China Postal Workers’ Union chairman Wu Wen-feng (吳文豐) said that he supports the new rule, as several people have attempted to forcibly enter post offices without a mask.
Many post offices are narrow or do not have windows, meaning that people cannot maintain the center’s recommended distance of 1.5m indoors when there are four or five people inside, he said.
People should not enter post offices if they are not wearing a mask, he added.
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