All individuals who received domestically made Medigen COVID-19 vaccination shots and need to travel abroad can now get one to three shots of a WHO-approved imported COVID-19 vaccine, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said Wednesday.
Since Nov. 12, 2021, imported vaccine shots have been available for individuals traveling overseas after being vaccinated with Medigen, but only in emergency cases.
As countries around the world relax border controls, those who travel overseas can provide proof of vaccination against the disease in place of self-quarantine or a negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test upon entry into certain countries, CECC head Victor Wang (王必勝) told a news conference in Taipei.
However, only eight countries and areas accept Medigen as a valid vaccination against COVID-19, including Indonesia, Thailand, New Zealand, Estonia, Palau, Belize, Paraguay and Somaliland, according to the CECC.
Individuals previously only vaccinated with Medigen should wait at least 28 days before getting a vaccine shot from another pharmaceutical company for their first two post-Medigen shots, and 84 days before receiving their first post-Medigen booster shot, Wang said, adding that they are also required to show relevant documents, such as electronic flight tickets or proof of enrollment/employment overseas.
Travelers can choose mRNA vaccines such as Pfizer-BionTech and Moderna, or any combination thereof, for their first-two post-Medigen jabs, but the next-generation Moderna Spikevax vaccination targeting the original COVID-19 viral strain and the Omicron subvariant BA. 1 is only available as a post-Medigen booster shot, Wang said.
According to CECC data, more than 300,000 people have received three doses of Medigen.
Asked whether being injected with one to three COVID-19 vaccination shots on top of Medigen poses any health risks, given that people may receive up to six COVID-19 vaccination shots, Wang said the practice is deemed safe by public health experts at the CECC and has been in place for people visiting the U.S. (and other countries) who only received Medigen jabs since November 2021.
People who have received post-Medigen shots should download their “Digital COVID-19 Certificates” at https://dvc.mohw.gov.tw/, two days after being vaccinated, which has to be shown to customs officers before entering other countries, Wang said.
Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel