A total of 266,145 people received government-funded flu vaccinations on the first day of the program yesterday, the highest number since 2021, while 99,567 received COVID-19 vaccinations, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said today.
Flu season begins this month every year, and the government-funded flu and COVID-19 vaccination programs began yesterday.
The number of people who received flu vaccines on the first day rose 0.8 percent from about 264,000 last year, while the number of people who received COVID-19 vaccines increased 5.9 percent from about 94,000 last year, CDC spokesperson Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said.
Photo: CNA
The number of people vaccinated against flu was the highest recorded since the phased vaccine rollout began in 2021, he said, adding that COVID-19 vaccinations reached their highest first-day level since the program shifted to an autumn-winter schedule in 2023.
Among people aged 65 or older, 174,600 received flu vaccines on the first day of the program, up 2.1 percent from 170,895 last year, while 83,053 received COVID-19 vaccines, up 3.8 percent from about 80,000 last year, Lin said.
This year’s government-funded flu and COVID-19 vaccination programs are being rolled out in two phases, the CDC said.
The first phase began yesterday for people aged 65 or older, indigenous people aged 55 or older, preschool children, high-risk individuals, pregnant women, parents or caregivers of infants younger than six months, staff at nursing and long-term care facilities, healthcare and disease prevention personnel, and preschool and childcare workers, the agency said.
The second phase would begin on Nov. 2, with flu and COVID-19 vaccinations extended to adults aged 50 or older without high-risk chronic conditions, it said.
Nearly 4,000 contracted medical centers nationwide provide government-funded vaccinations, and people can find nearby clinics through local health department Web sites, the CDC Web site or its Line account, or the 1922 disease prevention hotline, the CDC said.
People should call to confirm vaccination hours or make an appointment and remember to bring their National Health Insurance card and other relevant documents, it added.
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