U.S. Health Secretary Becerra held a videoconference today (21) with Taiwan’s Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung, and the two sides exchanged views on the outbreak and global public health issues. The U.S. side said it will assist Taiwan in obtaining a vaccine as soon as possible.
In addition to strictly enforcing all epidemic prevention measures, Taiwan authorities have also made it a priority to accelerate the procurement of vaccines.
The U.S. Department of Health tweeted that Health Secretary Xavier Becerra and Taiwan’s Minister of Health and Welfare and Central Epidemic Commander Chen Shizhong exchanged views on the epidemic online and also took the initiative to mention that they would assist Taiwan in obtaining a vaccine.
Becerra tweeted on EST 20, “Honored to discuss the evolving epidemic and global health issues with Taiwan’s Minister Chen and that the U.S. will assist Taiwan in obtaining a vaccine so that Taiwan can continue to contribute to health security and can return to the World Health Assembly (WHA) watch list.” The text also ends with the tag “LetTaiwanHelp.”
Following the White House’s announcement in April that it would release approximately 60 million doses of AZ vaccine produced by AstraZeneca, President Biden recently announced that another 20 million doses of vaccine would be released to assist the international community. The vaccines, which have been officially licensed in the United States, include products from Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson. A total of 80 million doses of the vaccine will be released in the United States to share with international friends.
White House spokeswoman Jen Paski, asked at a regular press conference on the 20th how the U.S. would distribute the released vaccines, said the U.S. is still evaluating how to distribute them, but will consider the principle of fairness and ensure that they are provided to places that need the most assistance, while maintaining regional balance.
Taiwan’s representative to the U.S., Mei-Chin Hsiao, said that she has been actively pursuing the release of the vaccine and has met with U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra to discuss the progress of Taiwan’s vaccine procurement.
In addition, in the midst of a global chip drought, Taiwan, a major town in the semiconductor industry, has also attracted international attention due to the recent rise in the epidemic. The Director of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York, Li Guangzhang, also said that the U.S. will assist Taiwan in obtaining more vaccines to help protect the important semiconductor industry.
Taiwan’s vaccine supply is limited, and the 410,000 doses of AZ vaccine that just arrived in Taiwan on the 19th is expected to complete operations in a week at the earliest and can be distributed to various locations to begin injections for the public.
The U.S. government is already helping Taiwan coordinate with vaccine manufacturers to expedite supplies.
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