HEALTH
Donation reminder launched
The Taiwan Blood Services Foundation and Facebook yesterday colaunched a Blood Donations feature for Facebook in Taiwan, which would alert people to donate blood in times of need, the foundation said in a statement. Although the blood donation rate in Taiwan is higher than in many other nations, its inventory has fallen over the past year. “Blood inventory in Taiwan was lower than the seven-day safe level for as many as 86 days in the first half of 2020 alone,” the foundation said. The feature could greatly improve blood collection efficiency, it said. People can participate in the program by going to facebook.com/donateblood to register to be alerted when nearby blood banks need donations. The Central Epidemic Command Center has issued an advisory that people who have returned from traveling abroad, have recovered from COVID-19 or have had close contact with a confirmed case should not donate blood for 28 days.
LABOR
More workers furloughed
The number of furloughed workers has grown over the past week as activity in the manufacturing sector slowed amid uneven demand for exports due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Labor said. As of yesterday, 1,049 companies had unpaid leave programs, while 25,208 workers had agreed to go on furlough, up 1,601 from a week earlier, ministry data showed. Among the companies, 353 were manufacturers, 332 were retailers or wholesalers, and 71 were in the service sector, the data showed. Manufacturers accounted for two-thirds of the companies that began furlough programs from July 16 to yesterday. The majority of employees on unpaid leave were in the manufacturing sector at 16,517, followed by retail and wholesale with 4,778, and transportation and warehousing at 1,138, the data showed. It was the highest number of people furloughed in the manufacturing sector since the pandemic started, a ministry official said.
LOTTERY
Lottery to reach NT$3.1bn
The Power Lottery jackpot on July 27 is expected to reach a record NT$3.1 billion (US$105 million), Taiwan Lottery Co said on Thursday. No one has won the lottery’s top prize in 47 draws, the longest in the game’s history, meaning that the prize money has built up, Taiwan Lottery said. If only one person wins the jackpot, it would be the highest payout to a winning ticket holder, the company said. The previous record jackpot was about NT$3 billion, on April 23, 2015. A Power Lottery ticket consists of seven numbers — a group of six numbers chosen from one to 38 and a seventh additional number from one to eight. To win the top prize, all seven numbers must match the numbers drawn.
SOCIETY
Zoo nicknames panda cub
A giant panda cub born almost one month ago at Taipei Zoo has been nicknamed Jou Jou (柔柔) because of its gentle nature and chubbiness, zookeepers said on Wednesday. The cub, born on June 28 to Yuan Yuan (圓圓), appears to have inherited the calm and quiet nature of its father, Tuan Tuan (團團), the zookeepers said, referring to two giant pandas that China gave to Taiwan in 2008. The zoo said that Jou Jou has been growing well and remains quite plump. The cub is to receive a proper name later, local media reports quoted Taipei Zoo spokesman Eric Tsao (曹先紹) as saying. Tsao added that the formal naming process would involve further observation of the cub’s nature and behavior, after which a series of names would be put forward for a public vote.
POLAM KOPITIAM CASE: Of the two people still in hospital, one has undergone a liver transplant and is improving, while the other is being evaluated for a liver transplant A fourth person has died from bongkrek acid poisoning linked to the Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store, the Ministry of Health and Welfare said yesterday, as two other people remain seriously ill in hospital. The first death was reported on March 24. The man had been 39 years old and had eaten at the restaurant on March 22. As more cases of suspected food poisoning involving people who had eaten at the restaurant were reported by hospitals on March 26, the ministry and the Taipei Department of Health launched an investigation. The Food and
A fourth person has died in a food poisoning outbreak linked to the Xinyi (信義) branch of Malaysian restaurant chain Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in Taipei, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) said on Monday. It was the second fatality in three days, after another was announced on Saturday. The 40-year-old woman experienced multiple organ failure in the early hours on Monday, and the family decided not to undergo emergency resuscitation, Wang said. She initially showed signs of improvement after seeking medical treatment for nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, but her condition worsened due to an infection, he said. Two others who
MEDICAL: The bills would also upgrade the status of the Ethical Guidelines Governing the Research of Human Embryos and Embryonic Stem Cell Research to law The Executive Yuan yesterday approved two bills to govern regenerative medicine that aim to boost development of the field. Taiwan would reach an important milestone in regenerative medicine development with passage of the regenerative medicine act and the regenerative medicine preparations ordinance, which would allow studies to proceed and treatments to be developed, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Victor Wang (王必勝) told reporters at a news conference after a Cabinet meeting. Regenerative treatments have been used for several conditions, including cancer — by regenerating blood cells — and restoring joint function in soft tissue, Wang said. The draft legislation requires regenerative treatments
Taiwanese should be mindful when visiting China, as Beijing in July is likely to tighten the implementation of policies on national security following the introduction of two regulations, a researcher said on Saturday. China on Friday unveiled the regulations governing the law enforcement and judicial activities of national security agencies. They would help crack down on “illegal” and “criminal” activities that Beijing considers to be endangering national security, according to reports by China’s state media. The definition of what constitutes a national security threat in China is vague, Taiwan Thinktank researcher Wu Se-chih (吳瑟致) said. The two procedural regulations are to provide Chinese