The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday said that it would probably list monkeypox as a category 2 notifiable communicable disease today or tomorrow.
The WHO is to convene an emergency committee meeting today in accordance with the International Health Regulations to discuss whether the spread of monkeypox to 39 countries, including 32 non-endemic countries, constitutes a public health emergency of international concern.
On Tuesday, the Singaporean Ministry of Health confirmed its first imported case of monkeypox, which is also the first case reported in Southeast Asia.
Photo: Reuters
South Korea yesterday reported its first confirmed case of monkeypox — a South Korean national who returned to the country on Tuesday.
Asked if Taiwan would step up its preventive measures against the disease, Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥), who is the CECC’s spokesman, said that health officials are discussing whether to list the viral infection as a notifiable communicable disease and are at the final approval stage.
Monkeypox is likely to be listed as a category 2 notifiable communicable disease and, if approved, the policy would be announced today or tomorrow at the earliest, Chuang said.
Photo: CNA
A man who last week returned to Taiwan from a trip to Europe had blisters and skin eruptions, but tested negative for monkeypox, Chuang said.
Separately, Chuang said that the definition of a confirmed COVID-19 case has been revised to include people who test positive with an at-home polymerase chain reaction (PCR) nucleic acid test that has been confirmed by a doctor.
Starting yesterday, people who test positive with a Food and Drug Administration-approved at-home PCR test and are confirmed to have the disease by a doctor would be considered a confirmed COVID-19 case, he said.
People who test positive with an at-home rapid antigen test and receive a doctor’s confirmation have been accepted as confirmed cases since May 26, he said.
The sensitivity and specificity of PCR tests are higher than rapid antigen tests, and the revision was made after a review by specialists, Chuang said.
People who test positive with either kind of test should write their name and test date on the test cassette, take a photograph of the cassette alongside their National Health Insurance card, and show it to a doctor during a telemedicine consultation, he said.
They should place the test cassette in a zipper bag if they are to see a doctor in person, Chuang said, adding that they are prohibited from taking public transport and are required to wear a mask throughout the trip.
PALAU LAUNCHES: The source said that Taiwanese military personnel traveled to Palau, where a US brigade watched their work amid plans for a defense network The military last month participated in live-fire launches of MM-104F Patriot (PAC-3) missiles under US observation in an undisclosed location in Palau, a step forward in a US-led plan to create a joint defense missile system in the first island chain, a source said on condition of anonymity. The PAC-3 is the mainstay surface-to-air missile of the US, NATO and democratic nations in East Asia, the source said, adding that it has never been live-tested within Taiwan’s borders, the source said. The proximity of Taiwan to China and China’s close surveillance of the nation’s borders and nearby sea zones is a significant
DETERRENCE: The president on Thursday is to launch the first indigenous submarine, which is to enter sea trials next month before being delivered to the navy next year Taiwan hopes to deploy at least two new, domestically developed submarines by 2027, and possibly equip later models with missiles to bolster its deterrence against the Chinese navy and protect key supply lines, the head of the program said. Taiwan has made the Indigenous Submarine Program a key part of an ambitious project to modernize its armed forces as Beijing stages almost daily military exercises. President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文), who initiated the program when she took office in 2016, is expected to launch the first of eight new submarines on Thursday under a plan that has drawn on expertise and technology from
FISHING FUROR: The latest spat was sparked by a floating barrier that was found across the entrance of Scarborough Shoal during a resupply mission to fishers Beijing yesterday warned Manila not to “stir up trouble” after the Philippine Coast Guard said it removed a floating barrier at a disputed reef that was allegedly deployed by China to block Filipino fishers from the area. Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan Island, 黃岩島) in the South China Sea has long been a source of tension between the nations. China seized the ring of reefs from the Philippines in 2012 and has since deployed patrol boats. The latest spat was sparked by a 300m floating barrier that was found across the entrance of the shoal last week during a routine Philippine government resupply mission
UP-AND-COMER: Taiwan’s youngest-ever Asian Games athlete, 11-year-old Lin Yi-fan, qualified for the final of the women’s park skateboarding event Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei (楊勇緯) yesterday won Taiwan’s first gold medal at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, defeating South Korea’s Lee Ha-rim 1-0 in the men’s 60kg category. The gold medal was Taiwan’s 100th since it first participated in the Games in 1954. Yang is also the first Taiwanese to win a gold medal in men’s judo at the Games. After defeating Lee, a teary-eyed Yang hugged his coach, Liu Wen-deng (劉文等). “I finally did it,” the world No. 7 judoka shouted. Previously, Taiwan’s judo team had only collected four silvers in the Asian Games, all of which were won by women. Yang’s gold
RSS