The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) yesterday reported 62,755 hospital visits for COVID-19 and 132 hospitalized cases for last week, the highest weekly numbers this year.
Hospital visits for COVID-19 increased 49 percent last week, CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) said.
A total of 132 people were hospitalized from Tuesday last week to Monday, and 86.4 percent of them had not got the JN.1-adapted vaccine, Guo said.
Photo: Chiu Chih-jou, Taipei Times
Of the 564 severe cases of COVID-19 this year, 75.7 percent are people aged 65 or older, 84.8 percent had underlying health conditions and 89 percent were not up to date on vaccines, he added.
The youngest hospitalized case last week was a five-month-old child, who did not have any underlying health conditions and was not old enough to get vaccinated, CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said.
The child was treated at a clinic for cold-like symptoms and later hospitalized after pulmonary infiltrates were observed on a chest X-ray, Lin said.
Fifteen deaths were reported in the past seven days, and they were aged 60 to 100, Guo said.
COVID-19 variant surveillance data show that NB.1.8.1 accounted for most local and imported cases in the past four weeks, he said.
As for COVID-19 activity in nearby countries, Guo said the number of cases in Malaysia and Singapore increased in the past few weeks, while it has slightly reduced in Hong Kong despite remaining high and slightly increased in Australia.
CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) said the centers’ projection of the domestic COVID-19 activity remains the same.
The current wave of infections is expected to peak late this month or early next month, with an estimated more than 200,000 hospital visits per week during the peak period, Lo said.
However, the slightly lower increase (49 percent) in weekly hospital visits last week could be because many clinics and hospitals were closed during the Dragon Boat Festival weekend, he said, adding that there could be a significant increase this week.
“This week is critical,” he said.
If the rate of hospital visits remains lower this week, the peak of the wave might not be as high as estimated, and the burden on the healthcare system would also be lighter than expected, he said.
The CDC encourages people to get vaccinated and wear masks in high-risk environments, he added.
Elderly people, pregnant women and those with underlying health conditions should do a rapid COVID-19 test when they develop respiratory symptoms, and seek medical care as soon as possible if they test positive to receive antiviral drugs, he said.
People who are not at high risk of developing severe complications from infection should also wear a mask in crowded places and seek medical attention at a clinic when they develop mild respiratory symptoms, he added.
Meanwhile, the CDC said 69 imported dengue fever cases have been reported this year as of Monday, which is the second-highest number in the same period in six years.
People should eliminate mosquito breeding sites to prevent dengue fever, especially during the plum rain season, it said.
The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) yesterday said it had deployed patrol vessels to expel a China Coast Guard ship and a Chinese fishing boat near Pratas Island (Dongsha Island, 東沙群島) in the South China Sea. The China Coast Guard vessel was 28 nautical miles (52km) northeast of Pratas at 6:15am on Thursday, approaching the island’s restricted waters, which extend 24 nautical miles from its shoreline, the CGA’s Dongsha-Nansha Branch said in a statement. The Tainan, a 2,000-tonne cutter, was deployed by the CGA to shadow the Chinese ship, which left the area at 2:39pm on Friday, the statement said. At 6:31pm on Friday,
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy’s (PLAN) third aircraft carrier, the Fujian, would pose a steep challenge to Taiwan’s ability to defend itself against a full-scale invasion, a defense expert said yesterday. Institute of National Defense and Security Research analyst Chieh Chung (揭仲) made the comment hours after the PLAN confirmed the carrier recently passed through the Taiwan Strait to conduct “scientific research tests and training missions” in the South China Sea. China has two carriers in operation — the Liaoning and the Shandong — with the Fujian undergoing sea trials. Although the PLAN needs time to train the Fujian’s air wing and
The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) put Taiwan in danger, Ma Ying-jeou Foundation director Hsiao Hsu-tsen (蕭旭岑) said yesterday, hours after the de facto US embassy said that Beijing had misinterpreted World War II-era documents to isolate Taiwan. The AIT’s comments harmed the Republic of China’s (ROC) national interests and contradicted a part of the “six assurances” stipulating that the US would not change its official position on Taiwan’s sovereignty, Hsiao said. The “six assurances,” which were given by then-US president Ronald Reagan to Taiwan in 1982, say that Washington would not set a date for ending arm sales to Taiwan, consult
PEAK MONTHS: Data showed that on average 25 to 27 typhoons formed in the Pacific and South China seas annually, with about four forming per month in July and October One of three tropical depressions in the Pacific strengthened into a typhoon yesterday afternoon, while two others are expected to become typhoons by today, Central Weather Administration (CWA) forecaster Lee Ming-hsiang (李名翔) said yesterday. The outer circulation of Tropical Depression No. 20, now Typhoon Mitag, has brought light rain to Hualien, Taitung and areas in the south, Lee said, adding that as of 2pm yesterday, Mitag was moving west-northwest at 16kph, but is not expected to directly affect Taiwan. It was possible that Tropical Depression No. 21 would become a typhoon as soon as last night, he said. It was moving in a
RSS