People with COVID-19 vaccination appointments could reschedule the date to next week if vaccinations are suspended due to Typhoon In-Fa, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday.
People who booked an appointment through the central vaccine appointment platform 1922.gov.tw for a day on which inoculations are suspended due to a typhoon would retain their eligibility, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the CECC, told the center’s daily news conference in Taipei.
They would receive another text message informing them to log onto the platform again and schedule a new appointment, the CECC said.
They should be able to receive their COVID-19 vaccination the following week, Chen said, urging residents of potentially typhoon-affected areas not to worry.
People who booked an appointment online or by telephone directly with a healthcare facility should reschedule their vaccinations according to the facility’s procedure, the center said.
The CECC also reminded healthcare facilities and local health authorities to prepare for the approaching typhoon and to ensure that their refrigerated vaccine storage would remain operational in the event of a power outage.
The center might postpone vaccine distribution today and tomorrow, depending on typhoon warnings, it said.
As of Wednesday, 5,894,500 vaccine doses had been administered — 5,718,272 first doses and 176,228 second doses, CECC data showed.
The center said that 24.35 percent of the population had been vaccinated, or 25.1 doses per 100 people.
To encourage more healthcare facilities to offer vaccinations, the CECC would increase its administrative payment to local healthcare facilities for COVID-19 vaccinations from NT$40 to NT$100 per dose, Chen said.
That would be on top of a NT$100 handling fee facilities receive per jab, as well as monetary rewards the CECC offers based on the number of doses administered, he said.
A new reward level has been added to give facilities that vaccinate 500 or more people a NT$15,000 reward, he said.
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