Due to the possibility that the rabies situation might change, the Rabies Central Epidemic Command Center has been set up as of today according to Paragraph 1, Article 17 of the Communicable Disease Control Act so as to ensure the health and wellness of the public and avoid panic in the community. It will be led by Vice Premier Mao Chi-Kuo with Minister Chen Bao-Ji from the Council of Agriculture and Minister Chiu Wen-Ta from Ministry of Health and Welfare coming together to be 2nd in command, collaborating a full mobilization between different departments to speed up the works of rabies prevention. 

The Command Center held its first ever meeting this noon (8/1), chaired personally by Overall Commander and Vice Premier Mao, inspecting and assigning the necessary preparation works to various departments in Taiwan. All the departments will do their best in enforcing the strict measures and all matters in the preparation works, keeping a close eye on the situation and adjusting contingency measures depending on the situation while maintaining good communication with the public. 

Overall Commander Mao states that currently in the world, almost all the advanced countries are included in the rabies endemic zones. Although only 9 countries and territories are not in the rabies endemic zones, information gathered from all the advanced nations indicates that as long as the proper prevention measures such as: vaccination of domestic pets, avoiding contact with wild animals, and performing necessary medical actions (vaccination for example) after being bitten or scratched are carried out, the morbidity and mortality rates are extremely low. The public need not over-react as the government policies currently in place and at work are in the direction of creating a complete preventive network. The public can feel assured as information regarding prevention has been made available to them via the most convenient channels, and resources like vaccines which are the top priority have also been prepared. 

Attendees of this meeting includes personnel from: Council of Agriculture, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Construction and Planning Agency under the Ministry of the Interior, National Fire Agency, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Education, Environmental Protection Administration, Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Tourism Bureau, Council of Indigenous Peoples, Council of Labor Affairs, Fair Trade Commission, Consumer Protection Committee, National Property Administration under the Ministry of Finance, Central Disaster Prevention and Response Council, Spokesperson’s Office, Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine under the Council of Agriculture, Forestry Bureau, Endemic Species Research Institute, etc.