The Central Epidemic Command Center on Monday said that it was mulling implementing rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests at COVID-19 hotspots nationwide to eliminate diagnosis delays.
The purpose would be to improve the efficiency of testing and reduce the waiting time for the results, the center said.
Since a domestic COVID-19 outbreak began last month, the government has been setting up numerous testing sites at hotspots, where people undergo not only a rapid antigen test, but also a PCR test, as the latter remains the standard for confirming COVID-19 cases.
Unlike PCR tests, which look for traces of SARS-CoV-2 genetic material in a patient’s mucus, rapid antigen tests are used to detect the protein of the virus.
Anyone who receives a positive result from a rapid antigen test is sent to either a hospital, government quarantine center or asked to quarantine at home while they wait for a PCR test result.
Those who receive a negative rapid antigen test result are asked to monitor their health while waiting for their PCR test result.
The center on Monday said that it was planning to use rapid PCR tests when people test positive in a rapid antigen test.
Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞), deputy head of the center’s medical response division, said results of a rapid PCR test can be provided in about 20 minutes, significantly quicker that the three-and-a-half hours required by a standard PCR test.
Both methods involve using a nasal swab to collect mucus to determine whether SARS-CoV-2 is present. The only difference is the time it takes to provide a result, he said.
Rapid PCR tests were first used at Taoyuan General Hospital when Taiwan launched a “travel bubble” with Palau in April, he added.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
Temperatures in northern Taiwan are forecast to reach as high as 30°C today, as an ongoing northeasterly seasonal wind system weakens, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said yesterday that with the seasonal wind system weakening, warmer easterly winds would boost the temperature today. Daytime temperatures in northern Taiwan and Yilan County are expected to range from 28°C to 30°C today, up about 3°C from yesterday, Tseng said. According to the CWA, temperature highs in central and southern Taiwan could stay stable. However, the weather is expected to turn cooler starting tonight as the northeasterly wind system strengthens again
Taiwan sweltered through its hottest October on record, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, the latest in a string of global temperature records. The main island endured its highest average temperature since 1950, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng said. Temperatures the world over have soared in recent years as human-induced climate change contributes to ever more erratic weather patterns. Taiwan’s average temperature was 27.381°C as of Thursday, Liu said. Liu said the average could slip 0.1°C by the end of yesterday, but it would still be higher than the previous record of 27.009°C in 2016. "The temperature only started lowering around Oct. 18 or 19
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