《TAIPEI TIMES》 Government’s flu vaccination program launched

‘NO IMMUNITY DEBT’: A CDC official said that with the border to reopen, the risk of flu infection is expected to increase, so people should get vaccinated soon

By Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

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The government-funded seasonal influenza vaccination program was launched yesterday, with Minister of Health and Welfare Hsueh Jui-yuan （薛瑞元） saying that there are 6.3 million doses available, so eligible recipients should get vaccinated as soon as possible.

There were fewer flu cases in the past two years as people applied non-pharmaceutical interventions and practiced social distancing and crowd control amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but many experts believe the flu season will be serious this year due to an “immunity debt” caused by a lack of exposure to the virus, Hsueh said.

“Some people say we will eventually pay off the immunity debt [with a worse-than-normal outbreak], but I do not agree,” he said. “If we practice preventive measures thoroughly, the infections we missed will not come looking for us.”

The ministry has 6.3 million doses of quadrivalent flu vaccines available for the government-funded program this year, enough for about one-quarter of the nation, he said.

Protection from a flu shot can last about a year, so people should get vaccinated yearly to reduce the risk of infection, serious complications for themselves and to protect the community, Hsueh said.

Centers for Disease Control （CDC） Director-General Chou Jih-haw （周志浩） said that epidemic monitoring data showed that flu infections have been increasing in the past few weeks, but they are still low compared with flu season.

“As the national border will be gradually reopened, the risk of infection is expected to increase, so we encourage people to get vaccinated as soon as possible, as it takes up to two weeks to build immunity after a flu shot,” Chou said, adding that the peak of the flu season is usually around the Lunar New Year holiday.

The vaccinations are offered in two phases, he said.

People eligible for the first phase are those at increased risks of exposure or severe flu complications, such as elderly people, healthcare workers, pregnant women, infants and young children, long-term care facility residents and people with comorbidities, he said.

The second phase, to begin on Nov. 1, expands eligibility to include people aged 50 to 64, he said.

“It is not too early to get vaccinated against the flu now,” Chou said, adding that people can get a flu shot and a COVID-19 vaccine shot on the same day.

The government-funded flu vaccines are offered at more than 4,000 contracted healthcare facilities across the nation, and people can check their local health department’s Web site or the CDC’s flu Web site （https://antiflu.cdc.gov.tw） to find vaccination locations and book an appointment, the CDC said.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES