The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday reported four new imported cases of COVID-19 — a traveler from Indonesia and three from the Philippines — bringing the total number of confirmed cases in Taiwan to 724.
The four people, all migrant workers, arrived in Taiwan on Nov. 25 and 26, and were tested before the end of their mandatory 14-day quarantine, the CECC said, adding that the results came back positive yesterday.
All migrant workers from the Philippines and Indonesia, except those hired as fishers, are required to quarantine for 14 days at a designated government-run center and are tested for COVID-19 a few days before their quarantine ends, the CECC said.
Photo courtesy of the Embassy of the ROC to the Holy See via CNA
The worker from Indonesia, a woman in her 30s, presented a negative COVID-19 test upon her arrival in Taiwan on Nov. 25, the CECC said.
Four days later, she tested negative again, under a CECC initiative to test all incoming Indonesian migrant workers, following a spike in the number of imported cases from the country, the CECC said.
Her third test on Tuesday came back positive, it said.
The three workers from the Philippines arrived in Taiwan on Nov. 25 and 26, with one developing a runny nose, while the others have so far shown no symptoms, the CECC said.
Migrant fishers are allowed to quarantine for the mandatory 14 days in separate cabins on their vessels or at designated hotels upon their arrival in Taiwan, the Fisheries Agency said.
To date, 632 of Taiwan’s 724 COVID-19 cases have been classified as imported. Of the total, 590 people have recovered, 127 are hospitalized and seven have died, CECC data showed.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the CECC, yesterday said that the center needs more data to determine whether to require that all foreign visitors receive virus tests after their mandatory quarantine ends.
As of Wednesday, the CECC had issued six fines of NT$10,000 to foreign visitors who failed to present a copy of a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test report upon arrival.
All arrivals, regardless of their nationality, have been required to present such reports since Tuesday last week.
Three people from the US, two from Hong Kong and one from Australia have been fined, each citing different reasons they were unable to present the PCR reports, the CECC said.
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