As many people are concerned about what types of health conditions make a COVID-19 vaccination inadvisable, the Food and Drug Administration has summarized a list for the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC), Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥), who is also CECC spokesman, said yesterday.
The list is based on information provided in the packaging of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine, he said.
Chuang said the three types of people who should not get vaccinated are “those who have had an allergic reaction to any of the active substances or other ingredients of the AstraZeneca vaccine,” “those who suffered an acute severe allergic reaction after getting the first dose of the vaccine” and “individuals under 18 years old.”
Photo: AFP
“We also recommend that people who are suffering acute severe disease with a fever or acute infection delay receiving a vaccination,” Chuang said.
People with certain health conditions should consult a doctor to assess the benefits and risks before receiving a vaccination, he said.
The conditions include “people with low platelet count or coagulation disorders [such as haemophilia],” “people whose immune system does not work properly [immunodeficiency] or are taking medicine that weakens the immune system,” “pregnant women or those who may be pregnant,” and “breastfeeding women.”
With the first batch of AstraZeneca vaccines expected to complete the testing tomorrow, the center hopes to start vaccinations as early as possible, Chuang said, but an announcement of the exact date would be made by Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who is also head of the CECC.
Meanwhile, the center yesterday reported five new imported cases of COVID-19, including a wanted fugitive sent back from the Philippines.
Four of the cases were from the Philippines, including two fishermen and a worker who tested positive after completing quarantine.
The other case from the Philippines is a Taiwanese in his 50s who was wanted in relation to a criminal case, Chuang said, adding that the man traveled to the Philippines in January 2019, was arrested and sent back to Taiwan on Friday last week, and tested positive while quarantined at a detention center.
The other imported case, No. 988, is a Frenchman who is a colleague of case No. 982 confirmed on Friday last week — a Frenchman in his 50s. They both arrived in Taiwan on Jan. 12.
Contact tracing showed that the two men mostly worked independently and rarely had close contact with other people.
Of the six identified close contacts of case No. 982 in Taiwan that underwent testing, only case No. 988 tested positive.
An Emirates flight from Dubai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport yesterday afternoon, the first service of the airline since the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran on Saturday. Flight EK366 took off from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at 3:51am yesterday and landed at 4:02pm before taxiing to the airport’s D6 gate at Terminal 2 at 4:08pm, data from the airport and FlightAware, a global flight tracking site, showed. Of the 501 passengers on the flight, 275 were Taiwanese, including 96 group tour travelers, the data showed. Tourism Administration Deputy Director-General Huang He-ting (黃荷婷) greeted Taiwanese passengers at the airport and
STRAIT OF HORMUZ: In the case of a prolonged blockade by Iran, Taiwan would look to sources of LNG outside the Middle East, including Australia and the US Taiwan would not have to ration power due to a shortage of natural gas, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday, after reports that the Strait of Hormuz was closed amid the conflict in the Middle East. The government has secured liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies for this month and contingency measures are in place if the conflict extends into next month, Kung told lawmakers. Saying that 25 percent of Taiwan’s natural gas supplies are from Qatar, Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus secretary-general Lin Pei-hsiang (林沛祥) asked about the situation in light of the conflict. There would be “no problems” with
PLANE HIT: The Israeli military said it shot down an Iranian Air Force fighter over Tehran, while an Iranian warship sank off Sri Lanka, with no cause known The US and Israel yesterday hit Iran’s capital and other cities in multiple airstrikes on the fifth day of the war with Iran. Israel targeted the Iranian leadership and security forces, while the Islamic Republic responded with missile barrages and drone attacks on Israel, and across the region. Tehran residents woke to dawn blasts and Iranian state television showed the ruins of building in the center of the capital. The Shiite seminary city of Qom and multiple other cities were also targeted. With fighter jets roaring overhead, those still in Tehran looked anxiously to the skies. One man, who ran a clothing shop,
Taiwan pineapples are to be exported to the US for the first time later this year, after the US yesterday announced importation requirements, the Ministry of Agriculture said today. The US Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service yesterday published a draft of requirements to import Taiwanese pineapples, with a 62-day comment period, the ministry said in a news release. The US maintains strict requirements for imported fresh fruit, it said. The ministry’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency applied to export pineapples to the US in 2020 and has since cooperated with the US to provide all the necessary information and reports, it
RSS