Taiwan yesterday received three shipments of COVID-19 vaccines, a total of 1.88 million doses.
The nation has so far received 8.92 million doses of the AstraZeneca and Moderna vaccines.
First to arrive was a donation from Japan. A Japan Airlines Co flight arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at about 1:45pm with 970,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine on board.
Photo: CNA
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC), and center officials Wang Pi-sheng (王必勝) and Chou Jih-haw (周志浩) greeted the flight holding signs thanking the Japanese government for its latest donation.
Japan has donated a total of 3.34 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine to Taiwan. The first batch of 1.24 million doses was delivered on June 4, while a second batch of 1.13 million doses arrived on Thursday last week.
Japan’s three donations would cover about 15 percent of Taiwan’s population, and are a tremendous help in the nation’s fight against COVID-19, Chen said at the airport.
“We are very grateful,” he said, before thanking the Japanese government and people once again for their friendship toward Taiwan.
A second shipment arrived at the airport at about 3:15pm.
The China Airlines Ltd (中華航空) flight, which flew in from Thailand, delivered 560,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine — ones purchased by the government.
Taiwan signed a contract with AstraZeneca PLC for 10 million doses on Oct. 30 last year — this was the third delivery, the center said.
The first delivery of 117,000 doses arrived on March 3, while the second delivery of 626,000 doses arrived on Wednesday last week.
Yesterday’s final shipment of vaccines arrived at the airport at about 4pm. The China Airlines flight, which flew in from Luxembourg, arrived with 350,000 doses of the Moderna vaccine.
Taiwan signed a contract with Moderna Inc for 5.05 million doses, the center said.
With yesterday’s shipment — the fourth delivery — the nation has so far received 1.15 million of the doses, it said.
The first delivery of 150,000 doses arrived on May 28, followed by 240,000 doses on June 18 and 410,000 doses on June 30.
As of 5pm yesterday, 7.58 million people had registered online to get vaccinated against COVID-19: 2.5 percent chose the AstraZeneca vaccine, 55.19 percent chose Moderna and 42.31 percent said they would accept either vaccine, the center said.
As of Wednesday, 4,337,272 COVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered — 4,242,075 first doses and 95,197 second doses, CECC data showed.
Additional reporting by CNA
SEARCH CONTINUES: The fighter jet disappeared from radar screens at 3:23pm, about 30 minutes after it took off, air force Major General Liu Hui-chien said Search-and-rescue teams yesterday searched for an air force pilot after his F-16V Block 20 jet went missing during an afternoon bombing exercise near the coastline of Chiayi County’s Dongshih Township (東石鄉), the air force said. The search continued as of press time last evening. The single-seat jet (serial number 6650) disappeared from radar screens at 3:23pm, about 30 minutes after it took off from Chiayi Air Base, air force Inspector General Major General Liu Hui-chien (柳惠千) told a news conference in Taipei. All F-16Vs are temporarily suspended from exercises pending the completion of emergency checks on the fleet, he said. The fighter piloted by
LUNAR NEW YEAR: The nation is expecting 4,200 international travelers to arrive today and 3,900 tomorrow, as people return home for the holidays, the CECC said The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday said it expects imported cases of COVID-19 to further increase today and tomorrow — the peak period for international arrivals before the Lunar New Year holiday. The nation has seen more imported cases of COVID-19 since it implemented a new policy on Tuesday requiring travelers on long-haul flights to undergo a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test upon arrival. Those who test positive are taken directly to hospitals from airports. Most of the recent confirmed cases of COVID-19 were travelers arriving from the US, CECC data showed. On Tuesday, 58 of the 625 travelers arriving at Taiwan
PROTECTION: The New Taipei City mayor said a pass could cover stores, but not eateries, while Ko Wen-je said vaccinated people could be exempted from some rules Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) and New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) on Saturday proposed implementing a “COVID-19 pass” regulation that would allow only vaccinated people into certain areas. New Taipei City is planning to require a “COVID-19 pass” for entry to “vulnerable spaces” to prevent the spread of COVID-19, Hou said. Non-students entering elementary schools in New Taipei City are required to show their COVID-19 vaccination cards or proof of a recent negative COVID-19 test. This is for the protection of students under the age of 12, who are not eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, city officials have said. The
TRACEABLE: The expansion of a cluster infection appears to be slowing, as genome sequencing results show a clearer link among confirmed cases, Chen Shih-chung said The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported 96 COVID-19 infections: four domestic and 92 imported cases. Three of the domestically transmitted cases are bank workers likely linked to previously reported airport clusters, it added. Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, attributed the high number of imported cases in part to the implementation on Tuesday of a tighter entry policy. Travelers arriving on long-haul flights are immediately tested for COVID-19 upon arrival and must wait for results of their rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests on site. Those who test negative are allowed to proceed with normal
RSS