Foreigners seeking to come to Taiwan for fertility treatments are to be allowed entry from tomorrow, Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said on Saturday.
The restriction is to be lifted due to the time-sensitive nature of reproduction treatment, he said, as the government gradually eases border restrictions following the stabilization of the COVID-19 situation in the country.
From Aug. 1, 2020, during the early stages of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan allowed foreign nationals to enter the country for medical treatment other than non-urgent medical needs, such as medical examinations and aesthetic medicine.
However, on May 16 last year, following a spike in domestic COVID-19 cases, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) suspended entry applications for international medical services, with the exception of special or emergency cases, to prioritize access to medical resources for Taiwan nationals, Shih said.
As the COVID-19 situation is improving in Taiwan and the country is gradually returning to normal, it has sufficient medical care capacity, so the CECC has reopened the country to international visitors seeking fertility treatments, he said.
Whether to open the border to foreigners with non-urgent medical needs, as well as tourists, would be assessed later on, he said.
Asked why the new policy takes effect tomorrow, and not on Monday next week, when foreign business travelers are to be allowed entry into Taiwan, Shih said that the applications can be submitted earlier because making arrangements with hospitals, applying for visas and reserving quarantine hotels all take time.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, assisted reproduction accounted for about one-quarter of the international medical services provided in Taiwan, Shih said, adding that such treatment often requires multiple sessions over a long period.
Data released by the Ministry of Health and Welfare showed that in 2020, the number of international visitors seeking medical services fell 41 percent to 2.23 million people from a year earlier.
The services in 2020 generated NT$9.5 billion (US$339.03 million at the current exchange rate), with 41 percent from ASEAN member states and 18.4 percent from China, ministry data showed.
Additional reporting by CNA
A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Yilan County at 8:39pm tonight, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries. The epicenter was 38.7km east-northeast of Yilan County Hall at a focal depth of 98.3km, the CWA’s Seismological Center said. The quake’s maximum intensity, which gauges the actual physical effect of a seismic event, was a level 4 on Taiwan’s 7-tier intensity scale, the center said. That intensity level was recorded in Yilan County’s Nanao Township (南澳), Hsinchu County’s Guansi Township (關西), Nantou County’s Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Hualien County’s Yanliao (鹽寮). An intensity of 3 was
Instead of focusing solely on the threat of a full-scale military invasion, the US and its allies must prepare for a potential Chinese “quarantine” of Taiwan enforced through customs inspections, Stanford University Hoover fellow Eyck Freymann said in a Foreign Affairs article published on Wednesday. China could use various “gray zone” tactics in “reconfiguring the regional and ultimately the global economic order without a war,” said Freymann, who is also a nonresident research fellow at the US Naval War College. China might seize control of Taiwan’s links to the outside world by requiring all flights and ships entering or leaving Taiwan
The next minimum wage hike is expected to exceed NT$30,000, President William Lai (賴清德) said yesterday during an award ceremony honoring “model workers,” including migrant workers, at the Presidential Office ahead of Workers’ Day today. Lai said he wished to thank the awardees on behalf of the nation and extend his most sincere respect for their hard work, on which Taiwan’s prosperity has been built. Lai specifically thanked 10 migrant workers selected for the award, saying that although they left their home countries to further their own goals, their efforts have benefited Taiwan as well. The nation’s industrial sector and small businesses lay
Quarantine awareness posters at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport have gone viral for their use of wordplay. Issued by the airport branch of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Agency, the posters feature sniffer dogs making a range of facial expressions, paired with advisory messages built around homophones. “We update the messages for holidays and campaign needs, periodically refreshing materials to attract people’s attention,” quarantine officials said. “The aim is to use the dogs’ appeal to draw focus to quarantine regulations.” A Japanese traveler visiting Taiwan has posted a photo on X of a poster showing a quarantine dog with a
RSS