Taiwan: President urges public to remain alert against influenza HIN1

04/17/2010 (CNA)

Taipei, April 17 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou called Saturday for the Taiwan public to remain alert against influenza HINI and he praised the Department of Health (DOH) for its work since the outbreak of the virus last year.

In conversation with Health Minsiter Yaung Chih-liang in the president's weekly online journal, Ma urged the public to stay on guard against the potentially fatal disease.

Yaung described the DOH's immunization efforts as the most important battle in Taiwan's public health history since the eruption of SARS in 2003.

"Among the 32 members (and observers) of the Organization for Economic Cooperation (OECD), Taiwan has the third-lowest H1N1-related mortality rate, which indicates that the country's medical treatment of the virus is one of the best in the world, " Yaung said.

This can be attributed to the fast flow of information in Taiwan and to a sound public health network facilitated by the National Health Insurance system, Yaung added.

According to Yaung, Taiwan's 70 percent H1N1 immunization rate among school children is also the highest in the world.

Although an H1N1 command center was temporarily dismantled by the DOH in late February after 303 days of operation, the president said, the public should not let down its guard against the virus as it might stage a comeback this year. (By Carfie Lee and Flor Wang)