The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday announced the nation’s 42nd confirmed case of COVID-19, a woman in her 50s related to a patient who had been in the same hospital ward as an earlier case.
The new case is associated with the nation’s 34th case — a woman in her 50s who was confirmed to be infected with the coronavirus after being hospitalized for about two weeks — as they had both been in the same hospital ward, but not the same room, said Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center.
The 42nd case is a relative of a patient in another room who had not recently traveled overseas, he said, adding that she sought treatment at a clinic for coughing and full-body fatigue on Feb. 23.
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
After an extended contact investigation for the 34th case, which included people who were in the same hospital ward when she was hospitalized, the 42nd case was reported as a suspected infection and tested positive for COVID-19 yesterday, he said.
The cluster of coronavirus cases linked to the 34th case has expanded to seven people: her daughter and granddaughter, three nurses and a janitor at the hospital, and the 42nd case.
All patients in the hospital ward have been moved to isolation wards, and the section has been temporarily closed and disinfected, Chen said.
Asked about a debate over whether the personal information and activities of confirmed patients should be made public, Chen said: “We will disclose the information if it helps the nation’s disease-prevention efforts.”
If the center can contact all the people who have had contact with confirmed patients, the personal information of the patients would not be publicized, he said.
“I have been struggling daily with this question of whether such information should be publicized,” Chen said.
He said he is worried that if such information is released, people would only avoid areas that have been visited by confirmed patients and neglect the more important task of taking personal preventive and protective measures.
Chen added that he is even more worried that it would affect people’s willingness to tell the truth if they are associated with confirmed patients, which would negatively affect the center’s contact investigations.
SEPARATE: The MAC rebutted Beijing’s claim that Taiwan is China’s province, asserting that UN Resolution 2758 neither mentions Taiwan nor grants the PRC authority over it The “status quo” of democratic Taiwan and autocratic China not belonging to each other has long been recognized by the international community, the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday in its rebuttal of Beijing’s claim that Taiwan can only be represented in the UN as “Taiwan, Province of China.” Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) yesterday at a news conference of the third session at the 14th National People’s Congress said that Taiwan can only be referred to as “Taiwan, Province of China” at the UN. Taiwan is an inseparable part of Chinese territory, which is not only history but
CROSSED A LINE: While entertainers working in China have made pro-China statements before, this time it seriously affected the nation’s security and interests, a source said The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) late on Saturday night condemned the comments of Taiwanese entertainers who reposted Chinese statements denigrating Taiwan’s sovereignty. The nation’s cross-strait affairs authority issued the statement after several Taiwanese entertainers, including Patty Hou (侯佩岑), Ouyang Nana (歐陽娜娜) and Michelle Chen (陳妍希), on Friday and Saturday shared on their respective Sina Weibo (微博) accounts a post by state broadcaster China Central Television. The post showed an image of a map of Taiwan along with the five stars of the Chinese flag, and the message: “Taiwan is never a country. It never was and never will be.” The post followed remarks
INVESTMENT WATCH: The US activity would not affect the firm’s investment in Taiwan, where 11 production lines would likely be completed this year, C.C. Wei said Investments by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in the US should not be a cause for concern, but rather seen as the moment that the company and Taiwan stepped into the global spotlight, President William Lai (賴清德) told a news conference at the Presidential Office in Taipei yesterday alongside TSMC chairman and chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家). Wei and US President Donald Trump in Washington on Monday announced plans to invest US$100 billion in the US to build three advanced foundries, two packaging plants, and a research and development center, after Trump threatened to slap tariffs on chips made
CONSISTENT COMMITMENT: The American Institute in Taiwan director said that the US would expand investment and trade relationships to make both nations more prosperous The US would not abandon its commitment to Taiwan, and would make Taiwan safer, stronger and more prosperous, American Institute in Taiwan Director Raymond Greene said. “The US’ commitment to Taiwan has been consistent over many administrations and over many years, and we will not abandon our commitment to Taiwan, including our opposition to any attempt to use force or coercion to change Taiwan’s status,” he said in an exclusive interview with the Liberty Times (the sister newspaper of the Taipei Times) on Friday last week, which was published in the Chinese-language newspaper yesterday. The US would double down on its efforts
RSS