An incentive program for older people to get vaccinated is to be extended until the end of next month, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced yesterday.
People aged 65 or older, as well as members of indigenous communities aged 55 or older, would remain eligible for the reward of hygiene or educational products worth NT$500 for receiving doses of a COVID-19 vaccine, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the CECC, told the center’s daily news conference.
Those eligible could claim the reward after their first, second and third doses, Chen said, urging older people to get fully vaccinated as soon as possible to increase their protection against the disease.
Photo: CNA
The program, implemented on March 10, was initially set to expire today. The extension comes as the number of local COVID-19 has been rising since late March.
To date, 83.59 percent of residents in the nation have received at least one COVID-19 shot, while 78.68 percent have gotten two doses and 52.04 percent have received a booster shot, CECC data showed.
Among people aged 65 to 74, 86.9 percent have received at least one shot, 83.3 percent have gotten at least two doses, and 69.4 percent have also gotten a booster shot, the data showed.
The figures for those aged 75 or older who had their first, second and booster shots is 76.6 percent, 71.2 percent and 55.5 percent respectively.
The official list of facilities offering COVID-19 vaccinations is available at reurl.cc/7eW0AQ, the CECC said, adding that the list indicates whether each respective facility requires appointments.
An alleged US government plan to encourage Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) to form a joint venture with Intel to boost US chipmaking would place the Taiwanese foundry giant in a more disadvantageous position than proposed tariffs on imported chips, a semiconductor expert said yesterday. If TSMC forms a joint venture with its US rival, it faces the risk of technology outflow, said Liu Pei-chen (劉佩真), a researcher at the Taiwan Industry Economics Database of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research. A report by international financial services firm Baird said that Asia semiconductor supply chain talks suggest that the US government would
ANNUAL LIGHT SHOW: The lanterns are exhibited near Taoyuan’s high-speed rail station and around the Taoyuan Sports Park Station of the airport MRT line More than 400 lanterns are to be on display at the annual Taiwan Lantern Festival, which officially starts in Taoyuan today. The city is hosting the festival for the second time — the first time was in 2016. The Tourism Administration held a rehearsal of the festival last night. Chunghwa Telecom donated the main lantern of the festival to the Taoyuan City Government. The lanterns are exhibited in two main areas: near the high-speed rail (HSR) station in Taoyuan, which is at the A18 station of the Taoyuan Airport MRT, and around the Taoyuan Sports Park Station of the MRT
Starlux Airlines on Tuesday announced it is to launch new direct flights from Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport to Ontario, California, on June 2. The carrier said it plans to deploy the new-generation Airbus A350 on the Taipei-Ontario route. The Airbus A350 features a total of 306 seats, including four in first class, 26 in business class, 36 in premium economy and 240 in economy. According to Starlux’s initial schedule, four flights would run between Taoyuan and Ontario per week: Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Flights are to depart from Taoyuan at 8:05pm and arrive in California at 5:05pm (local time), while return flights
Nearly 800 Indian tourists are to arrive this week on an incentive tour organized by Indian company Asian Painted Ltd, making it the largest tour group from the South Asian nation to visit since the COVID-19 pandemic. The travelers are scheduled to arrive in six batches from Sunday to Feb. 25 for five-day tours, the Tourism Administration said yesterday. The tour would take the travelers, most of whom are visiting Taiwan for the first time, to several tourist sites in Taipei and Yilan County, including tea houses in Taipei’s Maokong (貓空), Dadaocheng (大稻埕) and Ximending (西門町) areas. They would also visit