Taipei City Government

During the COVID update press conference on May 26, Mayor Ko Wen-je reported that a total of 81,852 new domestic cases and 55 imported cases were reported nationwide. Among these, 9,062 domestic cases and 24 imported cases belong under Taipei City. He expects the plateau period of the current wave to last for a while, and the good news is that Taipei City’s medical system still retains its capability to deal with the situation.
 
Regarding the number of cases among city students, Ko pointed out that if we add in all patients in elementary, middle, and high schools, the number seems to be climbing slowly. As steps to control the spread has been taken since late April, the class suspensions have an impact in slowing down the spread. The mayor pointed out that the spread is most significant among elementary school students, as it is nearly impossible to prevent kids from playing together afterschool. The numbers also indicate that remote learning helps to slow the spread of COVID-19.
 
The mayor pointed out that there’s a significant number of parents choosing Pfizer/BioNTech (BNT) vaccine over Moderna vaccine for kids, causing disruptions in booking appointments. There are three channels for reserving kid’s BNT vaccine: receiving the shot on campus, at clinics, or at hospitals. The Department of Education (DOE) has joined hands with the Department of Health to administer vaccination on campus up through next week. The goal is to use up the current supply of kids’ BNT vaccine for kindergarten and elementary school students by June 3.
 
With the current wave plateauing, Taipei’s strategy is to further stall the spread. That is why city elementary, middle, and high schools will continue to utilize remote learning next week (May 30 – June 2). For graduating classes at middle school and high school that have concluded all required lessons, physical classes will be suspended up to the graduation ceremony.
 
Public kindergartens which share the same campus with upper schools will also have the week off. For independent kindergartens and private kindergartens, the city government will respect the choice of the respective managements on deciding whether to conduct physical classes or adopt remote learning.
 
Deputy Mayor Tsai Ping-kun remarked that BNT vaccine for kids will be available starting June 3. He explained that after discussions among DOE and related organizations, the decision to continue remote learning for next week. The consensus is to stall the spread of the virus at schools, ensuring that the upcoming vaccination session will not be interrupted.
 
He added that for children attending public and private kindergartens in Taipei, sufficient amount of BNT vaccines for children will be available at vaccination stations across all 12 districts. For children above 5 years old who want to be vaccinated, parents should let the school know and it will arrange appointments as soon as possible.