Taiwan reported 262 new domestic cases of COVID-19 on Tuesday, along with five imported cases and 65 backlogged cases for a total of 332 cases. There were also 13 deaths announced on Tuesday.
Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) Director Chen Shih-chung said that as backlogged cases have gone down greatly, they would no longer announce them.
Chen said that the Rt, or reproduction number, has gone down greatly in the past few weeks. The Rt represents how many people the average COVID patient will transmit the virus to. The Rt dropped to 1.02 on Monday from a peak of 15 between May 13-15. He attributed the drop to the public's compliance of Level 3 measures but called on the public to remain vigilant.
Of the 262 new local cases, 136 were men and 126 were female. They contracted the disease between May 20-31. Of the 65 backlogged cases, 31 were men and 34 were women. They contracted COVID-19 between May 20-30.
The country also reported 13 more deaths from the virus, bringing the death toll from the beginning of the pandemic to 137. The deceased include 10 men and three women aged 60 and over. They contracted the disease between May 13-27 and died between May 24-31.
Of the 327 new local cases announced on Tuesday, most were in Greater Taipei. The Tuesday totals by city and county are as follows:
New Taipei City: 166
Taipei City: 87
Taoyuan City: 23
Changhua County: 12
Taichung City: 10
Keelung City: 8
Yilan County: 5
Chiayi City: 4
Hualien County: 3
Taitung County: 3
Miaoli County: 2
Tainan City: 1
Kaohsiung City: 1
Penghu County: 1
Hsinchu County: 1
Of these new cases, 253 have been to Greater Taipei while one patient from another county had traveled to Taipei’s Wanhua District. A specific source of transmission is known for 55 cases, the source is unknown for 18, and the rest are still under investigation.
There were also 5 imported cases including 3 men and 2 women who are all Filipinos in their 20s.