Taiwan could end quarantine in October: CECC

中央疫情指揮中心：台灣可能在 10 月取消隔離

Experts recommend CECC implement '0+7' plan in October


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A committee of experts is recommending that the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) begin preparations for ending mandatory quarantine for inbound passengers by implementing the "0+7" plan within a month and the center says that this could take place in October.

According to local media reports, the CECC convened a panel of experts to discuss epidemic prevention policies on Wednesday (Sept. 14) and participants pointed out that given that the positivity rate of overseas arrivals is only 3.69%, the center should quickly start to prepare for an end to quarantine under the "0+7" scheme within a month. Under this plan, quarantine would be eliminated for arriving passengers, and instead, they would be required to observe seven days of self-health monitoring.

When asked to comment on the experts' recommendation on implementing the "0+7" formula at the daily press briefing on Thursday (Sept. 15), CECC spokesman Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) said that it still depends on when the peak of the current local outbreak in Taiwan occurs. Chuang said that once a significant decline in cases begins, the new program can be launched.

Regarding whether the change can take place in October, Chuang said, "Of course, there is a chance in October, but it still depends on the epidemic, especially since right now is the peak period." For the time being, Chuang exhorted the public to cooperate with the government in observing epidemic prevention and quarantine measures to reduce the number of possible infections reasoning that "the sooner cases peak and begin to decline, the sooner (the borders) can be opened."

When pressed on the actual timetable for commencing the "0+7" policy in October, Chuang said that it can only begin when there is a significant decline in local COVID cases, "therefore, the possibility of opening (the borders) in early October is relatively lower."

As for estimates by some experts that there will be more than 60,000 local COVID cases per day next week, Chuang said that based on the CECC's estimates, it is unlikely that the average number of daily cases next week will be that high. However, Chuang indicated that such a figure could be possible on individual days of the week, especially Tuesday and Wednesday.

Chuang said that it is necessary to observe whether the recent long holiday caused a spike in cases that could run into next week.

In addition, WHO Secretary General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, announced on Wednesday that the number of reported deaths from COVID last week was the lowest since March 2020. Tedros stated that the world is in the best position since the start of the pandemic to put it to an end, "we are not there yet, but the end is in sight."

Chuang noted that the situation with the pandemic in each country is different and the current epidemic in Taiwan is still rising. Nevertheless, Chuang said that the current wave is not as big as the previous wave and the overall supply of vaccines and drugs is sufficient.

He cautioned that Taiwan is facing the autumn and winter seasons, and as it opens its borders to the outside world during this period, imported cases of influenza and COVID will need to be closely monitored.

When it comes to Taiwan's defenses, 93.3% of Taiwanese residents have received one dose of the COVID vaccine, 87.2% have been administered two shots, and 72.7% have been given three jabs. As for the fourth dose, 35.7% of people aged 65 and over have received the fourth shot. The vaccination rate for children aged six months to four years has reached 34.4% for the first dose and 5.2% for the second dose.