Japan donates 1.24 million doses of AstraZeneca COVID vaccine to Taiwan

Japan has donated 1.24 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID vaccine to Taiwan. The vaccines landed in Taoyuan early Friday afternoon. Health minister Chen Shih-chung said the vaccines, after passing inspection, will be first offered to health care workers and other front-line workers, as well as residents of long-term care homes and people 75 and older. At 1:57 Friday afternoon, Japan Airlines flight JL809 touched down at the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport, carrying 1.24 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine. It arrived 40 minutes ahead of schedule. Staff was seen carefully moving container after container of vaccine off the cargo plane. By 3:30, the vaccines had arrived at a logistics center in Taoyuan. Chen Shih-chung CECC The Japanese government has provided Taiwan with 1.24 million doses of the AstraZeneca COVID vaccine. We are extremely grateful, because they are coming at a tense time in our COVID fight. Japan had originally planned to send the lion’s share of this supply to COVAX. But they chose not to due to the friendship between our two sides, the long-standing friendship between the people of our two countries, because making this donation through the COVAX platform would take a considerable amount of time. There are a great many procedures that would drag on for a long time. Them providing the vaccines directly is a reflection of Japan’s affection for Taiwan and of its faithfulness. These 1.24 million doses are Taiwan’s largest vaccine shipment to date. The health chief said they’ll be administered as soon as possible. Chen Shih-chung CECC Once the vaccines are in, we will of course carry out a sealing inspection. I have instructed the Taiwan FDA to handle this as quickly as possible, so that the shots can be ready to administer soon. We’re able to slightly expedite the process, because the relevant technical information all came in the past two days, and has cleared inspection. What remains now is a verification of the quality and safety of the vaccines themselves. The shelf life of these vaccines is relatively long – the expiration date is Oct. 14. At 1.24 million doses, this is our largest batch so far. I believe that it will be very helpful in pandemic prevention. On Friday, the CECC announced changes to its national COVID vaccination program. People in priority groups 1-3, namely health care staff and other front-line workers, will be first to get the vaccine. Residents of long-term care facilities, as well as people 75 and older, will be moved up the priority list and offered vaccines as well. Shots will be made available to other groups as soon as possible.