Taiwan reported 51 new COVID-19 cases on Monday, consisting of 15 domestic and 36 imported cases, and extended the Level 2 COVID-19 alert currently in place, according to the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC).

The new domestic cases include eight linked to Kaohsiung Harbor, four hotel employees in Yilan County, and three related to the larger outbreak in Taoyuan, according to the CECC.

Seven of the new cases were classified as breakthrough infections, and one of the individuals infected had received one dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The vaccination status of the remaining cases is still under investigation, the CECC said.

In addition to the domestic cases, Taiwan also reported 36 imported cases on Monday, 23 of which involved passengers who tested positive upon arrival in Taiwan on Sunday. The CECC did not release any information regarding the vaccination status of the imported cases.

To date, Taiwan has confirmed 18,376 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began in early 2020, including 14,918 domestically transmitted infections.

With no deaths reported on Monday, the number of confirmed COVID-19 deaths in the country remained at 851.

Level 2 extended

The CECC also announced a two-week extension of the current Level 2 COVID-19 alert to Feb. 7, though rules regarding visits to hospitals have been tightened in light of the recent rise in domestic cases.

Starting Monday, visits to hospitalized patients will be banned unless in emergency situations where permission is granted by the hospital, though these patients are allowed to have one person accompany them during their stay, according to the CECC.

Source: Focus Taiwan News Channel