POLICY PROPOSAL: Shorter quarantines with stricter test requirements would help keep the number of undetected asymptomatic cases low, preventing flare-ups of COVID-19

Taipei Times
Date: Aug 13, 2020
By: Lee I-chia / Staff reporter

National Taiwan University (NTU) College of Public Health vice dean Tony Chen (陳秀熙)

yesterday said a classification for foreign countries based on COVID-19 infection risk should be introduced, and the mandatory 14-day quarantine shortened to five days with two mandatory tests for travelers from high-risk countries.

New imported cases and foreign nationals testing positive after returning home from Taiwan has sparked public debate on whether the government should expand COVID-19 testing to all inbound travelers to better detect asymptomatic cases locally, he said.

Taiwan has so far done a good job detecting most COVID-19 cases at its border, due to strict border control policies, including testing of all inbound travelers with symptoms and a 14-day home quarantine for all arriving travelers, but it might miss asymptomatic cases, which might lead to local outbreaks, Chen added.

Based on data on imported cases, he said that the majority of them developed symptoms within five days after entering Taiwan and that a five-day quarantine with two tests might be more effective than the current policy.    [FULL  STORY]