The WHO announced that it will include Taiwan's domestic Medigen vaccine in its Solidarity trial. This is an opportunity for Taiwan's Medigen vaccine to be recognized overseas if the phase 3 clinical trial can have positive results.
Another 300,000 doses of the AstraZeneca (AZ) vaccine have arrived at Taoyuan International Airport on Wed. morning the 27th. This is the sixth donation from Japan.
On the other hand, on Tues. Oct. 26, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced that it will include Taiwan's domestic vaccine developed by Medigen Vaccine Biologics Corp. in the Solidarity trial. The Solidarity trial is sponsored by the WHO to run Phase III trials for the COVID-19 vaccine candidates selected out of a pool of 20 and it will be operated by the health ministries of the Philippines, Colombia, and Mali. American biotechnology firm Inovio's DNA vaccine will also be tested. This is an opportunity for Taiwan's Medigen vaccine to be recognized overseas.
Lee Ping-ing, Specialist Advisory Panel Member, CECC: “This means that the preliminary testing that Medigen carried out was convincing enough for WHO that the vaccine is safe and could prompt the immune system to develop responses that could potentially protect from COVID-19.”
Current Central Epidemic Command Center's (CECC) statistics show that 70 percent of senior citizens aged 75 and above in Taiwan have received at least one dose of vaccine, but there is still around 30 percent of them unwilling to get vaccinated. One health expert shared his concern that since seniors are at higher risk of developing serious illness from COVID-19, the government should do more to promote COVID policies or set up more vaccination stations for seniors' convenience.
Lee Ping-ing, Specialist Advisory Panel Member, CECC: “The government should try to boost senior citizens' confidence in COVID-19 vaccines and stress the importance and necessity of getting vaccinated. The government should consider offering next-door vaccination services for senior citizens.”
Reservation for the second phase of the 12th round of COVID-19 vaccination has closed at 12pm on Oct. 27. The second phase includes offering a first shot of Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and a second shot of AZ and Moderna. Vaccination will start as early as Thursday the 28th.
又有AZ疫苗到貨！日本第6度捐贈我國的30萬劑AZ疫苗，週三27號上午9點多，順利運抵桃園機場，後續將進行封緘檢驗，再給國人接種。
而新冠國產疫苗也傳來好消息！世界衛生組織WHO週二26號宣布，與哥倫比亞、馬利與菲律賓衛生部，共同啟動「團結試驗疫苗」計畫，也就是跨國、隨機的臨床試驗平台，其中台灣的高端疫苗、和美國的INOVIO的新冠疫苗，被列入候選疫苗名單，若三期試驗成功，有機會成為被國際認證的疫苗。
疫情指揮中心專家諮詢小組委員李秉穎表示:「這表示說高端所進行的一些初期的動物實驗臨床試驗的資料，讓世衛組織的專家委員會，他們覺得說 這疫苗可能會成功，而且安全性也滿好的。」
而根據指揮中心統計，國內75歲以上長者、第一劑疫苗覆蓋率達七成，但仍有三成不願打疫苗，專家擔憂，這些高齡且有慢性病的長者，是新冠肺炎重症及死亡的高危險群，建議中央加強宣導，或是增加接種站、讓長者就近施打。
疫情指揮中心專家諮詢小組委員李秉穎表示:「如果是因為對疫苗的信心，或者是疫苗的必要性有誤解的話，應該加強對長者的疫苗的宣導，主動出擊到長者住的地方去幫他們打疫苗。」
此外，第12期第二階段BNT第一劑、AZ和莫德納第二劑疫苗預約接種，到27號週三中午12點結單，最快從28號週四起開始施打。