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.
TYPHOON: The storm’s path indicates a high possibility of Krathon making landfall in Pingtung County, depending on when the storm turns north, the CWA said Typhoon Krathon is strengthening and is more likely to make landfall in Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said in a forecast released yesterday afternoon. As of 2pm yesterday, the CWA’s updated sea warning for Krathon showed that the storm was about 430km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point. It was moving in west-northwest at 9kph, with maximum sustained winds of 119kph and gusts of up to 155kph, CWA data showed. Krathon is expected to move further west before turning north tomorrow, CWA forecaster Wu Wan-hua (伍婉華) said. The CWA’s latest forecast and other countries’ projections of the storm’s path indicate a higher
SLOW-MOVING STORM: The typhoon has started moving north, but at a very slow pace, adding uncertainty to the extent of its impact on the nation Work and classes have been canceled across the nation today because of Typhoon Krathon, with residents in the south advised to brace for winds that could reach force 17 on the Beaufort scale as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecast that the storm would make landfall there. Force 17 wind with speeds of 56.1 to 61.2 meters per second, the highest number on the Beaufort scale, rarely occur and could cause serious damage. Krathon could be the second typhoon to land in southwestern Taiwan, following typhoon Elsie in 1996, CWA records showed. As of 8pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 180km
TYPHOON DAY: Taitung, Pingtung, Tainan, Chiayi, Hualien and Kaohsiung canceled work and classes today. The storm is to start moving north this afternoon The outer rim of Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taitung County and the Hengchun Peninsula (恆春半島) at about noon yesterday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, adding that the eye of the storm was expected to hit land tomorrow. The CWA at 2:30pm yesterday issued a land alert for Krathon after issuing a sea alert on Sunday. It also expanded the scope of the sea alert to include waters north of Taiwan Strait, in addition to its south, from the Bashi Channel to the Pratas Islands (Dongsha Islands, 東沙群島). As of 6pm yesterday, the typhoon’s center was 160km south of
STILL DANGEROUS: The typhoon was expected to weaken, but it would still maintain its structure, with high winds and heavy rain, the weather agency said One person had died amid heavy winds and rain brought by Typhoon Krathon, while 70 were injured and two people were unaccounted for, the Central Emergency Operation Center said yesterday, while work and classes have been canceled nationwide today for the second day. The Hualien County Fire Department said that a man in his 70s had fallen to his death at about 11am on Tuesday while trimming a tree at his home in Shoufeng Township (壽豐). Meanwhile, the Yunlin County Fire Department received a report of a person falling into the sea at about 1pm on Tuesday, but had to suspend search-and-rescue
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