TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The Centers for Disease Control said Friday that government-funded COVID vaccines will be available to all residents aged 6 months and older from Jan. 1 to Feb. 28 to prepare for increased travel and a predicted surge in cases.
CDC Spokesperson Lin Ming-cheng (林明誠) said that domestic COVID cases are currently at a relatively low level, per CNA. However, based on past COVID outbreak trends, another wave is predicted in May. Since it takes approximately two weeks after vaccination to develop full protection, the government is expanding vaccination during this specific period.
Lin explained that the self-paid COVID vaccine costs around NT$4,000 (US$127). To avoid confusion during the expanded vaccination period, self-paid vaccinations will be temporarily suspended, in coordination with private providers.
The CDC said that at the Dec. 9 meeting of the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, it was decided that from Jan. 1 to Feb. 28, government-funded COVID vaccines will be available to all residents aged 6 months and older who have not yet been vaccinated, to boost immunity and reduce the risk of severe illness or death following infection.
According to CDC statistics, government-funded vaccines were originally provided to only 10 high-risk groups this year, but uptake has been higher than last year. Among those aged 65 and older, about 933,000 doses were administered, up 30.7% from 714,000 doses the previous year.
For those aged 50 to 64, around 408,000 doses were administered, an 18.3% increase from 345,000 last year. Current vaccine stock includes approximately 1.344 million doses across both available brands.
The CDC said that the domestic supply currently includes Moderna LP.8.1 and Novavax JN.1 COVID vaccines. Both are effective and safe against the prevalent domestic and international variants NB.1.8.1 and XFG.
Residents aged 12 and older may choose either brand. Children aged 6 months to 11 years may only receive Moderna LP.8.1.
The CDC also reported that adverse events from COVID vaccines have declined to levels comparable with flu vaccines, averaging about three reports per 100,000 doses administered.
