The Taipei and New Taipei City governments are in talks with a number of hotels with a view to them becoming “quarantine hotels” housing those required to undergo quarantine, as the four hotels in the program are fully booked following the introduction of new border controls implemented due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Taipei Department of Information and Tourism Commissioner Liu Yi-ting (劉奕霆) said the city’s three existing “quarantine hotels” are fully booked and the government is in talks with other hotel operators to encourage them to join the initiative.
The New Taipei City Government said that its “quarantine hotel” is also fully booked and it is looking to sign contracts with more hotels to meet increased demand.
The two cities said the rising demand was due to the government’s announcement that, starting on Thursday, all incoming passengers, whether Taiwanese or foreign nationals, would be required to remain in quarantine for 14 days, regardless of where they arrive from, as part of disease-prevention efforts.
Residents who are required to undergo quarantine are encouraged to do so at home, the New Taipei City Government said in a statement on Thursday.
If individuals are concerned that staying at home could expose their family members to the risk of infection, both governments said that they would offer subsidies and discounts to family members who stay at a hotel during the 14-day quarantine period.
Taipei is offering a maximum NT$7,000 subsidy for family members who stay at a hotel, Taipei Deputy Mayor Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) has said.
The New Taipei City Government said it would ask hotels to offer families a 50 to 70 percent discount if a family member is under compulsory quarantine.
The two cities last month initiated a “quarantine hotel” project to house individuals who are required to undergo quarantine, but do not have a place to stay or who do not want to stay in their own home.
Operators who wish their establishment to become a “quarantine hotel” have to pass screenings by the local health authority.
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
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