The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced that it would launch the Fall-winter COVID-19 Prevention Program starting on December 1 to enhance border quarantine control and to strengthen community prevention and medical response measures. The CECC urges the public and medical institutions to follow these measures.

Program details are listed below.

A. Border quarantine: all travelers coming to Taiwan and transit passengers are required to provide a certificate of a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test result issued within three days prior to boarding the flight to Taiwan.

Starting from December 1, 2020, until February 28, 2021 (local time at the place of departure), travelers arriving at airports in Taiwan or transit passengers at airports in Taiwan, regardless of nationality (Taiwanese nationals or foreign nationals) or travel purpose (studies, work, diplomatic or official business, or others) are all required to present a certificate of a negative COVID-19 RT-PCR test result issued within three days (working days) of boarding before they are allowed to board their flight to Taiwan.

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B. Community prevention: people must wear masks in eight types of public venues, and violators who refuse to comply after being advised could be penalized according to laws.

From December 1, people must wear masks in the following eight types of public venues: healthcare facilities, public transportation, places of consumption, learning places, sports and exhibition venues, entertainment venues, religious and worship places, offices and business venues. Members of the public who do not wear a face mask as required and refuse to wear a mask after being advised to do so will be fined not less than NT$3,000 and no more than NT$15,000 according to Subparagraph 6, Paragraph 1, Article 37 of the Communicable Disease Control Act by the local government.

C. Medical response: strengthen case reporting and specimen collection procedures, and formulate incentive indicators.

The CECC pointed out that it considered strengthening case reporting and specimen collection procedures to be an important prevention strategy under the Fall-winter COVID-19 Prevention Program and it has made four key measures. The four key measures are as follow: 1. healthcare facilities execute their duty of reporting cases of statutory notifiable disease; 2. draw up an indicator of incentives for case reporting and specimen collection, that is, strengthening screening for patients with pneumonia at the outpatient department and emergency department of hospitals in communities; 3. draw up the incentive indicator of strengthening screening for hospitalized patients; 4 draw up the incentive indicator of strengthening health monitoring for healthcare personnel.

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