HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC; ) is an agency of the (NHCC). It has been activated by the
government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government i ...
of
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
for several disease outbreaks, such as the
2009 swine flu pandemic The 2009 swine flu pandemic, caused by the H1N1 influenza virus and declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) from June 2009 to August 2010, is the third recent flu pandemic involving the H1N1 virus (the first being the 1918–1920 Sp ...
and the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. The head of the agency is
Chen Shih-chung Chen Shih-chung (; born December 1952) is a Taiwanese politician. He served as Minister of Health and Welfare from 2017 to 2022, gaining wide recognition in 2020 as the public face of Taiwan's COVID-19 efforts. He was the Democratic Progressiv ...
, the minister of health and welfare. The CECC is associated with the
Taiwan Centers for Disease Control The Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (CDC; ) is the agency of the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Republic of China (Taiwan) that combats the threat of communicable diseases. Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) The Central Epidemic ...
(Taiwan CDC). A temporary command center was first established in 2003 during the SARS epidemic, which caused 71 deaths in Taiwan. Then, as a result of lessons learned from this epidemic, a permanent National Health Command Center was approved as a project on 16 August 2004; NHCC offices opened in the CDC building on 18 January 2005. The CECC is one of the command centers that are part of the NHCC.


2009 swine flu pandemic

On 28 April 2009, the CECC held its first meeting hosted by the Minister of Health,
Yeh Ching-chuan Yeh Ching-chuan (; born 29 June 1950) is a Taiwanese politician. Education Upon graduation from National Taiwan University medical school, Yeh began studying for his master's degree in public health. He then obtained an MPH in epidemiology from ...
. Participating agencies included the Department of Health, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Economic Affairs. On 20 May 2009, the CECC confirmed Taiwan's first imported case of H1N1 influenza. The CDC immediately reported to the WHO and other countries through International Health Regulations Focal Points. On 24 May, the first indigenous case was confirmed. These precautionary measures triggered many different policy responses in Taiwan.


2013 bird flu epidemic (virus subtype H7N9)

On 3 April 2013, the
Executive Yuan The Executive Yuan () is the executive branch of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Its leader is the Premier, who is appointed by the President of the Republic of China, and requires confirmation by the Legislative Yuan. ...
activated the CECC in response to the H7N9 influenza (avian influenza or bird flu virus) epidemic in mainland China. The Executive Yuan deactivated the CECC for H7N9 influenza on 11 April 2014. The CECC convened 24 meetings with government agencies including the Council of Agriculture, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications, and the Ministry of Education. It also convened meetings with 22 city and local governments. In addition, regional and deputy commanding officers of the Communicable Disease Control Network attended these meetings. On 17 May 2013, the slaughtering of live poultry was banned at traditional wet markets, eliminating risk of avian influenza being transmitted from animals to humans.


2015 dengue fever outbreak

Dengue fever is caused by the dengue virus, and is common in tropical and sub-tropical climates. Outbreaks occur from time to time in Taiwan, and the CECC was activated on 14 September 2015. There were 43,784 cases reported in total, most of these being in the tropical climate of the southern cities of
Tainan Tainan (), officially Tainan City, is a special municipality in southern Taiwan facing the Taiwan Strait on its western coast. Tainan is the oldest city on the island and also commonly known as the "Capital City" for its over 200 years of his ...
and
Kaohsiung Kaohsiung City ( Mandarin Chinese: ; Wade–Giles: ''Kao¹-hsiung²;'' Pinyin: ''Gāoxióng'') is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Ka ...
with 52% and 45% respectively. Taiwan experienced consecutive outbreaks of dengue fever in both 2014 and 2015.


2016 Zika virus epidemic

CECC was activated on 2 February 2016.


COVID-19 pandemic

In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the CECC was activated on 20 January 2020.


Coordinating the response to COVID-19

The CECC has the authority to coordinate work across government departments and enlist additional personnel during an emergency. The CECC has coordinated government response measures across areas including logistics for citizens on the ''Diamond Princess'', disinfection of public spaces around schools, and daily briefings from Minister of Health
Chen Shih-chung Chen Shih-chung (; born December 1952) is a Taiwanese politician. He served as Minister of Health and Welfare from 2017 to 2022, gaining wide recognition in 2020 as the public face of Taiwan's COVID-19 efforts. He was the Democratic Progressiv ...
, which are regularly aired on large news channels in Taiwan. Originally established as a level 3 government entity, the CECC was promoted to level 1 on 28 February 2020. In January,
Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the no ...
closed its borders to all residents of Wuhan amid concerns that the country was not receiving timely updates, because it was excluded from the World Health Organization (WHO).


Activities of the CECC

The agency has sent warning text messages target to mobile phones in specific areas, urging people to practice social distancing, especially by avoiding crowded scenic areas. On 18 March, the CECC raised its travel notice for the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and advised against all nonessential travel to these countries. It also announced that certain exempted foreign nationals must observe a 14-day home quarantine upon arrival from overseas. On 25 March, even as Taiwan saw zero new confirmed cases on that day, the CECC announced recommendations that indoor events which would be attended by more than 100 people should be suspended, while outdoor gatherings of more than 500 people should also do so.


Taiwan's response

Taiwan's response has been praised in ''
JAMA ''The Journal of the American Medical Association'' (''JAMA'') is a peer-reviewed medical journal published 48 times a year by the American Medical Association. It publishes original research, reviews, and editorials covering all aspects of biom ...
'', the journal of the
American Medical Association The American Medical Association (AMA) is a professional association and lobbying group of physicians and medical students. Founded in 1847, it is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Membership was approximately 240,000 in 2016. The AMA's sta ...
. According to ''JAMA'', Taiwan should have seen the second-largest outbreak of COVID-19 in the world, but has instead effectively eliminated community transmission. Taiwan has done this without ordering people to stay home or shutting down schools, restaurants, shops and other businesses. As a result, Taiwan's economy is not suffering the same economic damage as countries under lockdown.


References


External links


Taiwan Centers for Disease Control (Taiwan CDC)
{{COVID-19 pandemic 2004 establishments in Taiwan Government agencies established in 2004 Disease outbreaks in Taiwan Organizations based in Taipei COVID-19 pandemic in Taiwan