Taiwan‘s health and Welfare Minister Chen Shih-chung, who is credited with leading Taiwan to become one of the world’s models of success in the fight against the epidemic, has warned people around the world to remain vigilant about the new coronavirus, even if they are vaccinated.
Chen, who is also commander of Taiwan’s Central Epidemic Command Center, told the Voice of America on Jan. 11 that governments will face challenges in distributing the vaccine to people, resulting in an “imbalance” between those who are already protected and those who are still at risk of infection. He added that the global number of new cases has not yet reached an all-time high.
Taiwan, with a population of nearly 24 million, currently has 838 new cases of the virus, one of the lowest infection rates in the world. This is due to Taiwan’s strict quarantine regulations and close tracking of people who have had close contact with patients.
Chen Shih-chung said, ” My concern is that once the vaccine is available, people will rush to let go of what they cannot do because of the epidemic regulations, and people will generally say ‘because of the protection’, people will become more proactive and open.” He added that the situation would make people want to start mass gatherings again and give up wearing masks.
With the mindset that the vaccine is here and we can get vaccinated, with the expectation that it will bring relief to outbreak control, people will not follow basic anti-epidemic measures, Chen said.
At a time when countries and regions have different approaches, Chen said he wants to make it clear that people “should not let their guard down.
The Global Vaccine Partnership, led by the World Health Organization, has secured nearly 2 billion doses of the new coronavirus vaccine for equitable distribution to the 190 countries that have signed up to the Global Access Facility for New Coronaviruses in 2021, with at least 1.3 billion doses reserved specifically for low- and middle-income countries.
But Chen said not everyone will get the vaccine right away, and some vaccines may not be effective. He said Taiwan would not accept any Chinese vaccines because of what he called the repeated problems with vaccine defects in China.
An article in the March 2019 issue of the medical journal The Lancet said China’s State Food and Drug Administration has not detected defective rabies vaccine or DPT3 vaccine in two years.
Chen Shizhong said that despite vaccination, vigilance against Neonic pneumonia can also ward off other diseases. He said there were no flu deaths in Taiwan in the last two months of 2020, and enterovirus cases declined because most people wore masks then, while 87 people died from the flu in the same period in 2019. Chen Shih-chung added that he plans to advise people in Taiwan to continue wearing masks after the new crown epidemic subsides.
Wearing masks is not that bad, especially in winter when it is cold outside,” he said. The masks work well to curb the new coronavirus as well as other respiratory diseases.”
Taiwan’s homegrown achievements in fighting the epidemic will not open the door to Taiwan’s long-sought participation in WHO activities. China, and China’s allies, have banned Taiwan’s participation in the WHO. But Chiu Chien-Min, dean of the College of Social Sciences at Taiwan’s Chinese Culture University, believes Taiwan’s anti-epidemic performance has already made it welcome overseas to show its light.
I think Taiwan’s role during this period of the new epidemic is significant, Taiwan has a big voice; and Taiwan’s success in fighting the epidemic will be mentioned whether it is the WHO or any forum,” Chiu said. So for Taiwan, he said, it had that effect.
But Wu Chia-Yi, an associate professor in the Department of Nursing at National Taiwan University, believes that the emergence of an airline pilot and two other cases of New Crown infection in Taiwan since the 22nd of last month has put Taiwan on high alert. Migrant workers entering Taiwan from infected countries such as Indonesia may also be carrying the virus.
Because we import Indonesian laborers, I think this group is potentially at risk in Taiwan, and it’s a high risk,” Wu Chia-Yi said. So if you ask me if there is a risk of future outbreaks in Taiwan, I think we still have a potentially high risk of outbreaks from imported cases.”
Recent Comments