Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on Wednesday announced a plan to buy 5.5 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines targeting new variants that it will begin administering, along with flu vaccines, in October.
Due to the COVID-19 virus continuing to mutate, the CDC will purchase vaccines that offer better protection against new strains, CDC spokesperson Tseng Shu-hui (曾 淑慧) said.
Tseng added that the agency plans to purchase 5.5 million doses within the year, but did not specify which variant the new jab would target.
Photo: CNA
The administration of the new vaccine will be scheduled in two phases and happen at the same time as the flu vaccine.
The first phase will kick off on Oct. 1 and individuals aged 65 and over, healthcare workers, and pregnant women will be eligible for both shots, Tseng said,
The second phase will begin on Nov. 1 and all individuals six months and older will be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine. Those between 50-64 will also be encouraged to have a flu jab.
The CDC did not explain how enough COVID-19 vaccines would be sourced to inoculate all those eligible. The total resident population in Taiwan is 23,413,608 as of May 2024.
On June 13, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration updated its recommendations regarding COVID-19 vaccines, urging manufacturers, where feasible, to update vaccines so they target the KP.2 variant in 2024 and 2025.
Huang Li-min (黃立民), a specialist in pediatric infectious disease at National Taiwan University Hospital, said that since vaccine manufacturers have not yet produced vaccines targeting the KP.2 variant, it is likely that only vaccines targeting the JN.1 variant will be available this fall and winter in Taiwan.
He also noted that the CDC would likely purchase Moderna shots because updating Novovax COVID-19 vaccines has proven trickier due to technical constraints.
For individuals unable to receive mRNA vaccines, Huang said the existing XBB vaccine is still effective at preventing severe illness.
He added that even if JN.1 or KP.2 variants of COVID- 19 vaccines are unavailable, Novavax’s XBB vaccine could still be a viable alternative.
According to the data released by the CDC on Tuesday, Taiwan has seen a continuous rise in COVID-19 cases for five consecutive weeks, with 817 new local cases reported from June 18 to 24.
Over the past four weeks, the JN.1 variant has been the most prevalent strain in Taiwan, accounting for 62 percent of domestic cases and 47 percent of imported cases.
Meanwhile, the KP.2 variant has made up 18 percent of domestic cases and 25 percent of imported cases.
Tseng said that the authorities only need to be informed of a COVID-19 case if it is moderate or severe.
She predicted that the epidemic would continue to spread slowly until mid-July and that the rate of increase in cases in the upcoming two weeks was expected to be lower than in the previous two weeks.
The Taoyuan Flight Attendants’ Union yesterday vowed to protest at the EVA Air Marathon on Sunday next week should EVA Airway Corp’s management continue to ignore the union’s petition to change rules on employees’ leave of absence system, after a flight attendant reportedly died after working on a long-haul flight while ill. The case has generated public discussion over whether taking personal or sick leave should affect a worker’s performance review. Several union members yesterday protested at the Legislative Yuan, holding white flowers and placards, while shouting: “Life is priceless; requesting leave is not a crime.” “The union is scheduled to meet with
‘UNITED FRONT’ RHETORIC: China’s TAO also plans to hold weekly, instead of biweekly, news conferences because it wants to control the cross-strait discourse, an expert said China’s plan to expand its single-entry visa-on-arrival service to Taiwanese would be of limited interest to Taiwanese and is a feeble attempt by Chinese administrators to demonstrate that they are doing something, the Mainland Affairs Council said yesterday. China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) spokesman Chen Binhua (陳斌華) said the program aims to facilitate travel to China for Taiwanese compatriots, regardless of whether they are arriving via direct flights or are entering mainland China through Hong Kong, Macau or other countries, and they would be able to apply for a single-entry visa-on-arrival at all eligible entry points in China. The policy aims
Taipei, New Taipei City, Keelung and Taoyuan would issue a decision at 8pm on whether to cancel work and school tomorrow due to forecasted heavy rain, Keelung Mayor Hsieh Kuo-liang (謝國樑) said today. Hsieh told reporters that absent some pressing reason, the four northern cities would announce the decision jointly at 8pm. Keelung is expected to receive between 300mm and 490mm of rain in the period from 2pm today through 2pm tomorrow, Central Weather Administration data showed. Keelung City Government regulations stipulate that school and work can be canceled if rain totals in mountainous or low-elevation areas are forecast to exceed 350mm in
EVA Airways president Sun Chia-ming (孫嘉明) and other senior executives yesterday bowed in apology over the death of a flight attendant, saying the company has begun improving its health-reporting, review and work coordination mechanisms. “We promise to handle this matter with the utmost responsibility to ensure safer and healthier working conditions for all EVA Air employees,” Sun said. The flight attendant, a woman surnamed Sun (孫), died on Friday last week of undisclosed causes shortly after returning from a work assignment in Milan, Italy, the airline said. Chinese-language media reported that the woman fell ill working on a Taipei-to-Milan flight on Sept. 22
RSS