Women in this country are given the hard sell rather than the hard facts on human papillomavirus (HPV) by some healthcare providers, a legislator and women's rights activists said yesterday.
Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Huang Sue-ying (
"Some gynecologist's offices have printouts promoting the vaccines featuring misleading slogans such as `three shots protecting you for life.' This is misleading," TWL secretary-general Tsai Wan-fen (
"In fact the vaccine only protects against certain strains of the virus," Tsai said. "It is no replacement for regular pap smears."
Currently the only HPV vaccine on the market in this country is Gardisil, manufactured by the pharmaceutical company Merck, Sharpe & Dohme (MSD). Gardisil is available on an out of pocket basis for approximately NT$12,000 for three doses.
A woman who only wished to be identified by her surname, Chen, recounted her experiences at the press conference. Chen discovered a promotion where tickets to see a popular singer could be picked up at selected gynecologist's offices.
When she turned up to pick up the tickets, she was given a sales pitch promoting Gardisil, she said.
Wang Je-chau (
"There is no reason for the department to take a stance on clinics offering Gardisil for women who want to pay out of pocket -- it's their choice," Wang said. "However, in terms of the public funding of such vaccines, the DOH is taking a cautious stance and will evaluate the pros and cons carefully before making a decision."
Wang added that DOH efforts to increase the percentage of women getting regular pap smears are ongoing.
The National Immigration Agency (NIA) said yesterday that it will revoke the dependent-based residence permit of a Chinese social media influencer who reportedly “openly advocated for [China’s] unification through military force” with Taiwan. The Chinese national, identified by her surname Liu (劉), will have her residence permit revoked in accordance with Article 14 of the “Measures for the permission of family- based residence, long-term residence and settlement of people from the Mainland Area in the Taiwan Area,” the NIA said in a news release. The agency explained it received reports that Liu made “unifying Taiwan through military force” statements on her online
A magnitude 5.7 earthquake struck off Taitung County at 1:09pm today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The hypocenter was 53km northeast of Taitung County Hall at a depth of 12.5km, CWA data showed. The intensity of the quake, which gauges the actual effect of a seismic event, measured 4 in Taitung County and Hualien County on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale, the data showed. The quake had an intensity of 3 in Nantou County, Chiayi County, Yunlin County, Kaohsiung and Tainan, the data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage following the quake.
Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) is to begin his one-year alternative military service tomorrow amid ongoing legal issues, the Ministry of the Interior said yesterday. Wang, who last month was released on bail of NT$150,000 (US$4,561) as he faces charges of allegedly attempting to evade military service and forging documents, has been ordered to report to Taipei Railway Station at 9am tomorrow, the Alternative Military Service Training and Management Center said. The 33-year-old would join about 1,300 other conscripts in the 263rd cohort of general alternative service for training at the Chenggong Ling camp in Taichung, a center official told reporters. Wang would first
A BETRAYAL? It is none of the ministry’s business if those entertainers love China, but ‘you cannot agree to wipe out your own country,’ the MAC minister said Taiwanese entertainers in China would have their Taiwanese citizenship revoked if they are holding Chinese citizenship, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said. Several Taiwanese entertainers, including Patty Hou (侯佩岑) and Ouyang Nana (歐陽娜娜), earlier this month on their Weibo (微博) accounts shared a picture saying that Taiwan would be “returned” to China, with tags such as “Taiwan, Province of China” or “Adhere to the ‘one China’ principle.” The MAC would investigate whether those Taiwanese entertainers have Chinese IDs and added that it would revoke their Taiwanese citizenship if they did, Chiu told the Chinese-language Liberty Times (sister paper
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