The Taichung City Government confirmed it is running out of the Moderna vaccine. Many people rushed to get shots as a result.
Nurse: “You'll have to wait until tomorrow. ”
Resident: “There aren't any numbers left?”
Nurse: “Come back tomorrow.”
Many people rushed to Taichung vaccination sites on April 21, hoping to get Moderna vaccines before the city's supply runs out. However, all of the available vaccines were already accounted for. This, plus the worsening epidemic situation and the requirement that workers in certain venues need to get third doses before April 22, resulted in brisk business at vaccination sites. At Taichung's Wenxin Forest Park vaccination site, numbers for people wishing to get the Moderna vaccine were distributed starting at 9 a.m. and none were left by 9:30 a.m.
Mr. Cheng, Resident: “I got a little frightened. There are just too many cases now. It's really a lot.”
Taichung's Health Bureau announced on April 20 that five vaccination sites will stop offering vaccination services and there were reports that people had their vaccine bookings at medical institutions canceled. The bureau said the city only has 50,000 Moderna doses left. It is currently administering 10,000 to 20,000 a day, which means it will run out by April 24.
Tseng Tzu-chan (April 20, 2022), Director, Health Bureau, Taichung City: “If vaccines from the central government don't arrive in time for the week between April 25 and May 1, then we will temporarily suspend offering the Moderna vaccine.”
Doctors say people have many considerations for deciding which vaccine to get, and the Moderna and BNT vaccines both have supporters and detractors. People should make rational decisions.
Shih Sheng-huan, Pediatrician: “Back when there was a sufficient supply of the Moderna vaccine, people were expressing concerns about the side effects and kept asking for BNT. When there was a sufficient supply of the BNT vaccine, people said that Moderna vaccine was more effective. Right now, the Moderna vaccine is temporarily unavailable, but you should still get whatever is available.”
The bureau said the city still has 26,000 Medigen vaccines and 1,500 AZ vaccines, which will be available next week. People who need to travel abroad are advised to get the AZ vaccine, while those worried about side effects should get Medigen.
民眾詢問沒有號碼牌了嗎? 護理師說：「要等明天喔！」
民眾趕到快打站，但現場已經額滿，疫情全台蔓延，加上24類場域工作人員22日起須完成第3劑疫苗接種，各地都出現搶打潮。以台中文心森林公園為例，400劑莫德納號碼牌，早上9點開放不到半小時就被搶光。
民眾鄭先生說道：「有一點嚇到我，這個人潮有點嚇到我了。」
疫苗限量，台中市衛生局20日也在官網公告，一連取消5個接種站的施打服務，也傳出有民眾在醫療院所預約施打被取消的情況。局長曾梓展表示，目前莫德納疫苗只剩5萬劑庫存，以每天施打1到2萬劑計算，預計24日就會打完，下週起將暫停提供莫德納。
台中市衛生局長曾梓展表示：「4月25日到5月1日這一週，如果中央疫苗還沒有下來的話，還沒有辦法撥補的話，我們要暫停施打莫德納疫苗。」
外界擔心莫德納斷貨施打率會跟著降低，對整體防疫不利。基層醫師則認為，民眾選擇疫苗的心理很微妙，莫德納與BNT都有人愛有人怕，民眾應該要冷靜思考。
小兒科醫師施勝桓表示：「之前那個莫德納供應量很充足的時候，民眾都是在擔心它的副作用，一直要找BNT，BNT很充足的時候民眾又覺得說莫德納的效果比較好，現在如果說莫德納暫時青黃不接的情況下，還是建議說有什麼就趕快打什麼。」
台中市衛生局表示，台中還有2.6萬劑高端及1500劑AZ，下週仍照常供應。醫師建議民眾有出國需求的可選擇AZ，擔心副作用的可選擇高端，有什麼就打什麼，才是疫情升溫當下最佳的自保之道。