A temporary vaccination center offering the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine at Taipei Railway Station would remain in service until Sunday, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday, extending the deadline from today.
The temporary site was opened on Sunday to bolster the nation’s vaccination coverage, allowing eligible recipients to directly get vaccinated on site without an appointment. Vaccine recipients are also offered a NT$100 gift voucher to be spent at Pxmart supermarket outlets.
People formed long lines in the station’s main hall on the first day of the center’s opening, prompting the CECC to deploy more healthcare personnel. Two extra vaccination sites were set up in the main hall on Monday due to high demand.
Photo: CNA
Deputy Minister of the Interior Chen Tsung-yen (陳宗彥), who is deputy head of the CECC, said 2,814 doses were administered at the temporary site on Tuesday and a total of 5,623 doses had been administered since Sunday.
As more people than expected turned out for vaccination, the CECC extended the site’s service period to Sunday, he said, adding that operating hours are from 1pm to 8pm.
All people in Taiwan, regardless of nationality, can get vaccinated if they meet the eligibility criteria, and a small gift would continue to be offered to the recipients, Chen said.
On Monday, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the CECC, said migrant workers who have overstayed their visas would not be turned over to the police when they show up for COVID-19 vaccination, encouraging them to get vaccinated.
However, local media on Tuesday reported that an undocumented migrant worker was asked to turn herself in and pay a fine, and was later arrested by police after going to a public health center in Hsinchu County’s Sinfeng Township (新豐) for vaccination.
Chen Tsung-yen yesterday said medical personnel at the Hsinchu site might have misunderstood the policy, so the CECC on Tuesday evening sent an emergency reminder to all related agencies.
The CECC has launched a special program for undocumented foreign nationals in Taiwan to get vaccinated, promising that those who have overstayed their visas would not be reported, investigated, fined or barred from re-entry when they visit a health center to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, he said.
Foreign nationals who overstay their visas are generally barred from re-entering Taiwan for a period after leaving the nation.
A similar program was launched for undocumented foreign nationals to get tested for COVID-19 amid a local outbreak earlier this year, he said, adding that more than 7,000 overstayers got tested at the time, but they were not detained or punished.
A temporary identification number would be given to undocumented foreign nationals who have no identity documents, by either the National Immigration Agency, the healthcare facility or non-governmental organizations that work with migrant workers, when they get vaccinated, Chen Tsung-yen said, adding that the number would only be used to keep a record of vaccination.
Undocumented foreign nationals who have identity documents, whether expired or not, can make a vaccination appointment or visit a drop-in vaccination site to receive a shot directly, he said.
The CECC called on the more than 83,000 overstayers in Taiwan to get vaccinated without fear of punishment and urged employers of undocumented foreign nationals to help convey the message to their employees.
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