South Korean media have reported that a flu vaccine has resulted in the death of at least 25 people in the country. At the heart of the incident is French pharmaceutical company Sanofi. The fact that Taiwan also imports the company’s flu vaccines has led to speculation about whether inoculated people in Taiwan are also at risk.
Health Minister Chen Shih-chung says that his ministry has reached out to Sanofi. So far, there have been no deaths connected to the company’s flu vaccine in other countries. Chen says that the Sanofi vaccines Taiwan has received are different from the batch sent to Korea. He also says that so far, there are no reports of deaths related to the vaccine in Taiwan, and that his ministry is continuing to monitor the situation.
Authorities are still looking into whether vaccines Taiwan received were produced at the same location as the vaccines sent to South Korea.