Taiwan reported 107 new domestic cases of COVID-19, two imported cases, and 11 deaths on Sunday. That was the lowest number of cases announced since Level 3 restrictions began on May 15.
When asked if the government would lift Level 3 restrictions at the end of the month, Health Minister Chen Shih-chung says it’s still too early to tell but they would consider adjusting some restrictions according to the risk level of different cities. He encouraged the public to continue to wear masks and practice social distancing.
Minister Chen also thanked the United States for its donation of 2.5 million doses of the Moderna vaccine which will arrive on Sunday. The US more than tripled the 750,000 doses originally announced on June 6 by three US Senators who visited Taiwan.
The addition of 11 more deaths from the virus brings the death toll from the pandemic to 549. The deceased include five men and six women, with the youngest patient in her forties. They contracted the disease between May 14 - June 15 and died between June 15 - 18.
Of the 107 new local cases announced on Sunday, 57 were men and 50 were women. They began experiencing symptoms between June 4 and June 19. The Sunday totals by city and county are as follows:
New Taipei City: 44
Taipei City: 31
Taoyuan City: 16
Taichung City: 6
Hsinchu County: 4
Miaoli County: 3
Changhua County: 1
Yilan County: 1
Keelung City: 1
A specific source of transmission is known for 27 out of the 32 cases outside of the Greater Taipei area, while the source of two are unknown and three are still being investigated.
Taiwan's two imported cases included a Filipino man in his 20s who was traveling from the Philippines and a Taiwanese woman in her 20s who was traveling back from Japan.
The Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) also reports that out of the 12,572 cases announced between May 11 - June 18, 59.6% have recovered.
The center also reports that 67 people have died following an AstraZeneca COVID-19 jab and authorities have not yet linked the fatalities to the vaccine.
About 1.5 million people in Taiwan have received the AZ vaccine and about 6.4% of Taiwan’s population of over 23.5 million have received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.