The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) yesterday announced a self-reporting system for people who test positive for COVID-19, as local infections continue to rise, with the center reporting more than 10,000 cases in a single day for the first time.
Under the system, which starts on Sunday, the government would alert anyone who tests positive for COVID-19 in a polymerase chain reaction test taken at a hospital or clinic with a text message telling them to fill out a form online, said Centers for Disease Control Deputy Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥), who is the CECC’s spokesman.
The message would include a single-use link for the recipient to provide information to determine if they are at risk of developing severe symptoms, such as whether they are pregnant or undergoing dialysis, he said.
Photo courtesy of the CECC
Additionally, they would provide information on close contacts, such as people they live, work or attend school with, he said.
The system would then send isolation notices to the close contacts provided, he added.
Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the CECC, said that people confirmed to have COVID-19 would first receive a telephone call to verify their identity, followed by the text message.
Parents or designated guardians should fill in the information for children under the age of 12, he said.
The self-report system can expedite the process of contacting close contacts, he added.
Under the current system, information on contacts is gathered directly by government staff from people who tested positive. Critics say staff have been overwhelmed amid a surge in local cases.
Yesterday’s 11,517 cases — 11,353 domestic infections and 164 among people arriving from abroad — was a new single-day high and the first time that Taiwan had reported more than 10,000 daily cases.
The two deaths were a man in his 70s and a woman in her 60s, both of whom had been unvaccinated. The man tested positive on Monday last week and the woman on Tuesday last week, and they passed away on Friday last week and Wednesday last week respectively.
The CECC also reported that 23 people had developed moderate symptoms of COVID-19 and three had developed severe symptoms.
Of the 51,663 domestic cases recorded nationwide from Jan. 1 to Wednesday, 142 were classified as having moderate symptoms and 17 as severe, accounting for 0.27 percent and 0.03 percent of the total respectively.
All other cases have displayed either mild or no symptoms, the CECC said.
New Taipei City reported the highest number of cases, with 4,552, followed by Taipei with 2,424, Taoyuan with 1,481, Taichung with 621 and Keelung with 504.
Kaohsiung reported 340 cases, Hualien County 303, Tainan 193, Yilan County 171, Hsinchu County 115, Hsinchu City 113, Changhua County 103, Pingtung County 94, Taitung County 87, Yunlin County 83, Miaoli County 63, Nantou County 42, Chiayi County 26 and Chiayi City 24.
Matsu recorded six cases, while Penghu and Kinmen counties reported four each.
Chen yesterday announced that Taiwan has signed a procurement contract to purchase about 4 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
The order would consist of 1.8 million doses for adults and 2.2 million doses for children, he said, adding that the Food and Drug Administration has issued emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for children aged 5 to 11.
Chen said he hoped the first batch of the new Pfizer-BioNTech vaccines would arrive by the middle of next month.
ESCALATING TENSIONS: The US called for restraint and meaningful dialogue after Beijing threatened Taiwanese independence advocates with the death sentence The US on Monday condemned China’s “escalatory and destabilizing language and actions” toward Taiwan after Beijing last week announced new guidelines to punish supporters of Taiwanese independence. Asked about the guidelines, which included the death sentence for “diehard” independence advocates, US Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller said: “We strongly condemn the escalatory and destabilizing language and actions from PRC [People’s Republic of China] officials.” “We continue to urge restraint and no unilateral change to the status quo,” he said at the press briefing. The US urges China to “engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan,” Miller said, adding that “threats and legal
DEATH THREAT: A MAC official said that it has urged Beijing to avoid creating barriers that would impede exchanges across the Strait, but it continues to do so People should avoid unnecessary travel to China after Beijing issued 22 guidelines allowing its courts to try in absentia and sentence to death “Taiwan independence separatists,” the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said yesterday as it raised its travel alert for China, including Hong Kong and Macau, to “orange.” The guidelines published last week “severely threaten the personal safety of Taiwanese traveling to China, Hong Kong and Macau,” MAC Deputy Minister and spokesman Liang Wen-chieh (梁文傑) told a news conference in Taipei. “Following a comprehensive assessment, the government considers it necessary to elevate the travel alert to orange from yellow,” Liang said. Beijing has
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) yesterday said that the Chinese Communist Party was planning and implementing “major” reforms, ahead of a political conclave that is expected to put economic recovery high on the agenda. Chinese policymakers have struggled to reignite growth since late 2022, when restrictions put in place due to the COVID-19 pandemic were lifted. The world’s second-largest economy is beset by a debt crisis in the property sector, persistently low consumption and high unemployment among young people. Policymakers “are planning and implementing major measures to further deepen reform in a comprehensive manner,” Xi said in a speech at the Great Hall
WATER CONCERNS: The CWA encouraged people to conserve water, as fewer typhoons would bring less rain, and the plum rain season brought in only 60% of average rainfall About two to four typhoons are forecast to come close to Taiwan between now and November, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, as it also forecast that extreme heat would persist throughout the week, only dropping by 1°C after Friday. The number of typhoons is slightly lower than the average of three to five, reflecting a weakening El Nino weather pattern and the possibility of a La Nina pattern approaching, CWA Weather Forecast Center Director Chen Yi-liang (陳怡良) told a news conference in Taipei. While typically fewer typhoons develop under such conditions, their routes would be more likely to pass near