Taiwan’s first cases of the new Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 of SARS-CoV-2 have been detected in five people arriving from overseas, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday.
Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞), who is deputy head of the CECC’s medical response division, said genome sequencing conducted on virus samples from 57 imported cases last week showed that four people were infected with the BA.5 subvariant, one with the BA.4 subvariant and the rest with the BA.2 subvariant.
While the new subvariants account for a small proportion of total imported cases, they have not been found in local cases, he added.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
The four cases of the BA.5 subvariant were found in people who arrived from the US, Turkey and Poland, while the BA.4 subvariant was found in a traveler who arrived from Chile, Lo said.
The people with BA.5 infections are asymptomatic or have mild COVID-19 symptoms, with one reporting a sore throat and another an abnormal sense of taste, he said.
Health authorities in South Africa first detected the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants in January and February respectively, Lo said, adding that they triggered a new wave of COVID-19 infections in that country in April and May.
Studies have shown that the two subvariants are more easily transmitted than previous Omicron subvariants and have a degree of “immune escape” — the ability to evade immune protection in the body induced by previous infection or vaccination, he said.
WHO data released on Wednesday last week showed that the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants have been reported in more than 40 countries, he said.
“Based on current studies, there is no indication that the Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants cause a higher risk of severe cases, but they are more contagious and capable of escaping immune protection,” he said, adding that the center is closely monitoring any changes in COVID-19 detected in imported cases, while increasing vaccination rates.
The risk of being reinfected with the same strain of SARS-CoV-2 is relatively low, but not impossible, Lo said, adding that if the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants become the primary circulating viruses in the local community, the risk of reinfection could rise.
Experts agree that a person’s immune protection from a previous COVID-19 infection can last about three months, but a few people might still contract the disease again, he said.
Asked whether “herd immunity” would be effective against the BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, Lo said that the local outbreak is mainly caused by the BA.2 subvariant, with antibodies protecting against the BA.1 and BA.2 subvariants for at least three to four months.
Over the weekend, he said the BA.1 subvariant has not been recorded locally since April 21.
The Ministry of the Interior (MOI) is to tighten rules for candidates running for public office, requiring them to declare that they do not hold a Chinese household registration or passport, and that they possess no other foreign citizenship. The requirement was set out in a draft amendment to the Enforcement Rules of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法 ) released by the ministry on Thursday. Under the proposal, candidates would need to make the declaration when submitting their registration forms, which would be published in the official election bulletin. The move follows the removal of several elected officials who were
The Republic of China (ROC) is celebrating its 114th Double Ten National Day today, featuring military parades and a variety of performances and speeches in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei. The Taiwan Taiko Association opened the celebrations with a 100-drummer performance, including young percussionists. As per tradition, an air force Mirage 2000 fighter jet flew over the Presidential Office as a part of the performance. The Honor Guards of the ROC and its marching band also heralded in a military parade. Students from Taichung's Shin Min High School then followed with a colorful performance using floral imagery to represent Taiwan's alternate name
FOUR DESIGNATED AREAS: Notices were issued for live-fire exercises in waters south and northwest of Penghu, northeast of Keelung and west of Kaohsiung, they said The military is planning three major annual exercises across the army, navy and air force this month, with the navy’s “Hai Chiang” (海強, “Sea Strong”) drills running from today through Thursday, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The Hai Chiang exercise, which is to take place in waters surrounding Taiwan, would feature P-3C Orion maritime patrol aircraft and S-70C anti-submarine helicopters, the ministry said, adding that the drills aim to bolster the nation’s offshore defensive capabilities. China has intensified military and psychological pressure against Taiwan, repeatedly sending warplanes and vessels into areas near the nation’s air defense identification zone and across
A Chinese takeover of Taiwan would severely threaten the national security of the US, Japan, the Philippines and other nations, while global economic losses could reach US$10 trillion, National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Lin Fei-fan (林飛帆) wrote in an article published yesterday in Foreign Affairs. “The future of Taiwan is not merely a regional concern; it is a test of whether the international order can withstand the pressure of authoritarian expansionism,” Lin wrote in the article titled “Taiwan’s Plan for Peace Through Strength — How Investments in Resilience Can Deter Beijing.” Chinese President Xi Jinping’s (習近平) intent to take Taiwan by force
RSS