A second batch of 240,000 doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Taiwan yesterday afternoon.
The vaccines arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport at 4:21pm, and were transported to a designated cold storage logistics center for inspection and sealing.
The shipment is part of 5.05 million doses Taiwan ordered from the US pharmaceutical company on Feb. 8.
Photo: Chu Pei-hsiung, Taipei Times
The first batch of 150,000 doses arrived on May 28.
The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) began administering 75,000 doses from that shipment to frontline medical workers on Wednesday last week, and another 73,200 doses were being administered beginning yesterday.
After taking delivery of the vaccines, the CECC would discuss with experts about how to distribute the doses, said Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥), who is deputy commander of the center.
The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine is packaged in vials containing 10 doses each. The vaccine can be stored at a temperature of minus-20°C for six months and at 2°C to 8°C for about 30 days.
Two doses are needed for the vaccine to be effective, as clinical trials have shown a 94 percent efficacy rate 14 days after the second dose, the CECC said.
Meanwhile, a senior US Department of State official on Thursday during a US Senate hearing said that 750,000 COVID-19 vaccines the US pledged to donate to Taiwan are expected to be delivered soon, but did not provide a date.
The US is working closely with Taiwanese regulators to make sure the vaccines meet all of their requirements, US Deputy Assistant Secretary for China, Mongolia and Taiwan Coordination Jonathan Fritz said.
“In very short order, we do expect to have those vaccines on their way to Taiwan, and hopefully into people’s arms shortly thereafter,” Fritz said when asked about the schedule for the doses, part of 7 million the US pledged to donate to Asia on June 3.
Asked if Taiwan could take delivery of the vaccines within weeks, Fritz responded: “I would hope perhaps even sooner than that.”
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