TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taipei announced new control measures for hospitals on Tuesday (May 18) to help alleviate the recent surge in domestic COVID cases.
Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) said during a press briefing Tuesday that in order to conserve medical resources for those most in need, he is directing hospitals throughout the city to set up dedicated coronavirus treatment wards or set aside manpower for quarantine centers or quarantine hotels to take care of COVID patients, CNA reported.
Ko said that only around 20 percent of coronavirus patients have severe symptoms and require hospitalization. Those with milder symptoms will be sent to quarantine centers and hotels where they will be monitored by medical staff, he added.
The city has set aside eight ambulances, two fire department buses, and 10 private buses to transport coronavirus patients. The mayor said the new measures should help ease the heavy caseload.
Amid Taiwan’s shortage of vaccines, Ko also said AstraZeneca vaccine doses previously allocated to the public in Taipei are being given to frontline medical workers instead. Taiwan recorded 240 local cases of COVID on Tuesday, including 102 cases in Taipei and 106 cases in New Taipei.
