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Taiwan approves updated Moderna vaccine as booster

ROC Central News Agency

09/05/2022 07:34 PM

Taipei, Sept. 5 (CNA) Taiwan's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) on Monday approved the use of Moderna's second-generation COVID-19 vaccine as a booster shot for recipients at high risk of infection or severe disease.

ACIP convener Lee Ping-ing (李秉穎) made the announcement about the updated vaccine, which targets both the original virus from 2020 and the Omicron subvariant BA.1, in a call with the media following an expert meeting convened by the committee Monday afternoon.

He said the ACIP had agreed to recommend the vaccine for use as a booster for two types of "vulnerable groups" -- seniors aged 65 and above and adults aged 18 and above with compromised immune systems.

The vaccine was also recommended for use among people at high risk of COVID-19 infection, such as front-line medical workers and airport and port employees, said Lee, adding that the vaccine should be administered at least three months after any previous COVID-19 vaccine shot.

A shipment of 2 million doses of the second-generation vaccines is expected to arrive in Taiwan sometime this month, he said.

Meanwhile, the ACIP on Monday also approved use of the Novavax COVID-19 vaccine as a first, second, or booster shot for children aged 12-17, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said in a press release, but it did not specify when the vaccine will be rolled out for that age group.

On June 30, Taiwan received its first and only batch of the Novavax vaccine, comprising 504,000 doses, which were made available to people aged 18 and over.

As of Sunday, some 134,000 doses of the Novavax, which expire on Sept. 30, were still in stock, according to CECC statistics.

As of Aug. 29, 92.7 percent of the eligible population in Taiwan had received a first shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, while 86.7 percent had received a second shot, and 72.2 had gotten a first booster shot, CECC statistics show.

(By Chen Chieh-ling and Matthew Mazzetta)

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