The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday announced that 1.06 million doses of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine are to be delivered to local governments in two batches from Wednesday next week.
The lot release testing of 2.74 million Moderna vaccines, including 240,000 doses purchased by Taiwan and 2.5 million doses donated by the US, is expected to be completed tomorrow, it said.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said that the distribution of 1.06 million doses to local governments would start on Wednesday next week, adding that the first delivery would comprise about 60 percent of the total, or 643,020 doses.
Photo: Lu Hsin-de, Taipei Times
The CECC on Friday announced that eligibility for COVID-19 vaccination would be expanded to include groups 1 to 8 of the vaccination priority list, with inoculations starting on Thursday next week.
The distribution of vaccines to local governments would be calculated based on each municipality’s population aged 64 to 74, aiming at vaccinating 30 percent of them, as well as the number of unvaccinated long-term care facility residents in other age brackets and caregivers at the facilities, aiming at vaccinating 60 percent of them, the CECC said.
The number of unvaccinated workers at correctional facilities who are in priority group 5 would also be taken into account, as well as the number of Moderna doses already delivered to the respective local governments, the center said.
As the long-term storage temperature for the Moderna vaccine is minus-20oC and it can last at between 2oC to 8oC for about 30 days, the center is to deliver the doses in two batches to prevent them being stored for too long in unsuitable conditions, Chen said.
“The second batch will be delivered as soon as the local governments have nearly finished administering the first batch,” he said.
The second batch would be used to vaccinate about 20 percent of the 65-to-75 age group, the center said.
People in priority group 7 — “essential workers for maintaining national security and normal society functions” — would be notified when they can get vaccinated at designated hospitals, it said.
The CECC also urged people who have received their first dose of the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine before May 9 to make appointments for receiving the second dose after 10 to 12 weeks, as this would ensure better protection against COVID-19.
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