Taiwan yesterday reported its first case of monkeypox, a man who recently returned from Germany.
On Monday, four days after his return, the man developed a fever, a sore throat, muscle pain, swollen lymph nodes and a rash, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said in a statement.
He sought medical attention two days later, and his case was reported to the CDC as a suspected monkeypox infection, the CDC said, adding that his test results returned earlier yesterday.
Photo: Reuters
The man, who had been studying in Germany, is quarantining in hospital, the agency said.
The health conditions of five listed contacts — three medical workers and two of his relatives — are being monitored, CDC Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsaing (莊人祥) said.
The CDC is to notify the WHO of the nation’s first recorded case of monkeypox, he said.
The CDC on Thursday designated monkeypox a category 2 communicable disease, citing its global spread.
The designation means that physicians are required to report confirmed or suspected cases to the CDC within 24 hours. Other category 2 communicable diseases are dengue fever, Zika fever, typhoid fever, measles and Chikungunya fever.
The CDC on Thursday said it had ruled out another suspected monkeypox case of a man in his 60s that was reported last week.
The disease is caused by the monkeypox virus, which can spread through close contact with an infected animal or person, and transmission occurs through direct contact with the infectious rash, scabs, body fluids or materials contaminated with the virus.
Since the UK first reported monkeypox cases in the middle of last month, at least 3,598 cases have been confirmed in 50 states around the world, mostly in Europe and the Americas, the CDC said.
Taiwan is the third Asian country that has reported the disease, following cases in Singapore and South Korea, the CDC said.
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
IMPORTANT BACKER: China seeks to expel US influence from the Indo-Pacific region and supplant Washington as the global leader, MAC Minister Chiu Chui-cheng said China is preparing for war to seize Taiwan, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said in Washington on Friday, warning that Taiwan’s fall would trigger a regional “domino effect” endangering US security. In a speech titled “Maintaining the Peaceful and Stable Status Quo Across the Taiwan Strait is in Line with the Shared Interests of Taiwan and the United States,” Chiu said Taiwan’s strategic importance is “closely tied” to US interests. Geopolitically, Taiwan sits in a “core position” in the first island chain — an arc stretching from Japan, through Taiwan and the Philippines, to Borneo, which is shared by
RSS