Mass COVID-19 testing in Keelung planned as domestic cases spike
ROC Central News Agency
03/30/2022 10:28 PM
Taipei, March 30 (CNA) Mass testing for COVID-19 is expected to be conducted imminently in Keelung City over a week-long period, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) Wednesday, as new cases in the city continue to climb.
The central and local governments have reached a consensus to screen Keelung's 360,000 residents by sending out at-home test kits, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the CECC, told reporters during a visit to the city.
As of press time, information about when the mass testing will begin has yet to be released, but Taiwan has secured contracts for a supply of 8 million rapid test kits, which would be sufficient for Keelung.
On Wednesday, 13 new domestic COVID-19 cases in a cluster involving police officers and a karaoke bar in Keelung were reported, along with six additional cases considered likely to be from the city, bringing the total caseload to 68.
In addition, the Keelung City government said it resumed inspections of 224 eateries in the city that also provide karaoke service on Tuesday, finding that three had resumed operations without filing the appropriate applications for doing so.
Inspectors at the scene ordered the three operators to halt operations immediately, while the local health department said it would issue fines of between NT$3,000 (US$105) and NT$15,000, in accordance with the Communicable Disease Control Act.
(By Wang Chao-yu and Evelyn Kao)
Enditem/ASG
The figures do not include imported cases reclassified as domestic ones, nor retroactively removed cases. As of March 30, Taiwan recorded 1,179 domestic cases in 2022, while the total number of imported cases rose to 7,319 from 2,375 on Dec. 31.
1. More doses of the Moderna and Pfizer-BNT vaccine have been administered in Taiwan than the government has officially received because recipients of the Moderna booster shot are given half the standard dose of the first and second jab, while medical workers can sometimes get more than the standard number of shots from a Pfizer-BNT vial. 2. Information about the booster dose and additional dose can be found at https://t.ly/4ZuW
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
