Taiwanese woman with dengue may be fined NT$300,000 for moving about in Kaohsiung

一名染登革熱的台灣婦人在高雄四處遊走將開罰三十萬元新台幣

The Kaohsiung resident was infected with the disease in Thailand, and will be fined for endangering the public


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – A Taiwanese woman could face a fine of up to NT$300,000 (US$9,669) for traveling around in Kaohsiung and posing a risk to public health after she learned that she had contracted the dengue fever virus on Dec. 2, reports said.

A female resident in Gushan District of Kaohsiung, who is in her forties, visited her husband working in Thailand on Nov. 18 and returned to Taiwan on Dec. 1, when she was found to have developed a fever at the immigration checkpoint at Kaohsiung International Airport, reported Liberty Times.

Despite negative results from a rapid screening for dengue fever conducted at the airport and a flu diagnosis later that night, the resident was confirmed to have been infected with the mosquito-borne disease the afternoon of the following day, Dec. 2.

She apparently ignored warnings by health officials and traveled around in the city even though she had received notification of her diagnosis at 4 p.m., Dec. 2. She also provided false information concerning her whereabouts before her admission to the hospital at 10 p.m., the report wrote.

The woman was identified to have set foot in areas around THSR Zhuoying Station, Qianjin District, Yancheng District, and Qishan District, exposing the public to an increased risk of contracting the disease, according to the city’s health department.

As a result of the reckless behavior, she will be subject to a fine between NT$60,000 (US$1,934) minimum and a maximum of NT$300,000 (US$9,669) for violating the Communicable Disease Control Act, officials said.