Focus Taiwan
Date: 08/30/2020
By: Chen Wei-ting and Chiang Yi-ching

Taipei, Aug. 30 (CNA) Travelers arriving at airports in Taiwan who have to be tested for COVID-19 will be given deep-throat saliva tests instead of throat swab tests starting Sept. 1, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) announced Sunday.

The change will make the testing process less uncomfortable and reduce the burden of health care professionals, CECC spokesman Chuang Jen-hsiang (莊人祥) said.

Unlike throat swab tests, where medical workers rub a cotton swab inside a person's throat to collect samples, deep-throat saliva tests can be conducted by the person being tested simply by spitting into a bottle, Chuang said.

The deep-throat saliva test has been widely adapted in Japan and Hong Kong, and recent studies have shown that the two tests have similar sensitivities, Chuang said.
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