Taiwan’s world first rationing system for surgical masks is proving highly effective in safeguarding the health and well-being of the people, according to Premier Su Tseng-chang Feb. 11.
The system is a powerful addition to the government’s arsenal of weapons protecting Taiwan from a possible outbreak of pneumonia caused by the new coronavirus first reported in the Chinese city of Wuhan late last year, Su said. It also buys time for the full effect of ramped-up surgical mask production to be felt in health care facilities around the country, he added.
Su said the system, as well as a doubling of surgical mask supplies since Feb. 11, enables medical centers to maintain a 15-day inventory in preparedness for any emergent issues. The efforts of all parties involved in implementing the system and churning out more surgical masks are sincerely appreciated by the government and the people, he added.
These unsung heroes include workers toiling around the clock at surgical mask production facilities, as well as staffers at Chunghwa Post Co. Ltd., Su said, adding that the latter is instrumental in ensuring masks are collected from 26 sites and quickly delivered to more than 6,000 pharmacies around Taiwan.
According to Central Epidemic Command Center under the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Centers for Disease Control, 18 cases of the virus were confirmed in Taiwan as of Feb. 11, with 44,653 identified in China and 496 reported in 26 other countries and territories. (SFC-E)
Write to Taiwan Today at ttonline@mofa.gov.tw