President Tsai Ing-wen (center) reaffirms the government’s commitment to combating coronavirus, while urging the public to get booster shots during a visit to the CECC Jan. 8 in Taipei City. (Courtesy of Presidential Office)
 

President Tsai Ing-wen said Jan. 8 that the government is committed to warding off COVID-19 to safeguard the health of citizens.

According to Tsai, close cooperation between the central and local governments as well as public compliance with the government’s disease management protocols are the keys to combating the coronavirus.

Anyone who is 18 and above and whose second dose was 12 weeks ago is urged to get a third dose amid the government’s rollout of COVID-19 booster shots, she added.

Tsai made the remarks during a visit to the Central Epidemic Command Center in Taipei City.

Long-haul flight inbound passengers are required to take a COVID-19 PCR test upon arrival and wait for the test result before passing through immigration in response to the increased transmission risk from the Omicron variant, according to the CECC.

Individuals whose result is negative will be allowed to take designated vehicles directly to their arranged quarantine facilities, while those with a positive result will have their passports and other entry documents inspected by specially designated airport workers and be taken directly to hospital by ambulance, the center added.

High-profile attendees at the event included Chen Shih-chung, minister of health and welfare and CECC commander; Chiu Kuo-cheng, minister of defense; Hsu Kuo-yung, minister of the interior; Jaushieh Joseph Wu, minister of foreign affairs; Wang Kwo-tsai, minister of transportation and communications; and Chang Shan-chwen, head of the advisory specialist panel to the CECC.

Tsai also took the opportunity to thank frontline workers for their tireless efforts in containing the spread of coronavirus.

Latest Central Epidemic Command Center statistics reveal 17,463 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 850 deaths in Taiwan. (DL-E)