COVID-19 and other respiratory infections are on the rise again, sparking a run on testing kits and calls to get vaccinated.
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00:00A bump in COVID, flu and parainfluenza has clinics like this busy.
00:06Many of those here today are concerned parents.
00:09Schools make great breeding grounds for respiratory bugs.
00:30Doctors say an uptick in COVID is especially pronounced.
00:34The most recent week with figures, May 11th to 17th, saw around 19,000 new confirmed cases.
00:40Variants are getting better at spreading and avoiding immune systems.
00:44Meanwhile, immunity in the population is down.
00:55But just how fast COVID is spreading is hard to gauge.
01:00Even those who want to test themselves for COVID have found pharmacies across the country are out of test kits.
01:09The Centers for Disease Control held a meeting with manufacturers last week to try and secure the supply chain.
01:15But results may take time.
01:16For now, the uptick doesn't look as bad as a spike that hit roughly the same time in 2024, at least not yet.
01:39But the CDC is encouraging people to get vaccinated in the hopes the uptick in cases stays under control.
01:46Luffy Lee and John Van Trieste for Taiwan Plus.