WHO removes Taiwan Province from SARS travel alert list, leaving only Beijing

The United Nations World Health Organization (WHO) today removed its recommendation to postpone all but essential travel to Taiwan Province of China, leaving just Beijing on the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) alert list.

WHO issued the travel restriction to Taiwan last month in an effort to stop SARS from spreading internationally. Improvements in case detection, infection control and the tracing and follow-up of contacts have now led to a steep drop in the daily number of new cases, suggesting SARS is no longer a threat to those traveling to Taiwan, the agency said.

Cathy Roth, a WHO virologist who was in Taiwan last month to assess the need for a strengthened response, said the SARS crisis there was taken very seriously at all levels.

“SARS stimulated vast and very rapid improvements in the health infrastructure, especially in the areas of hospital infection control procedures, systems for data collection and reporting, mobilization of the public, and coordination of all agencies contributing to the outbreak response,” Dr. Roth said.

WHO stressed, however, that areas with recent local transmission should still screen all international departing passengers to ensure that those who are sick with SARS or are contacts of cases do not travel. This recommendation is still valid for Beijing, Hong Kong and Taiwan in China, and Toronto, Canada.

Though the number of new and current SARS cases continues to decline globally, WHO urges global vigilance in detecting and treating the disease, warning that one case left undetected can spark a new outbreak.

The latest statistics on SARS indicate a total 8,460 probable cases and 799 deaths reported worldwide.

Meanwhile, the first global conference on SARS opened today in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. More than 1000 scientists and clinicians - including specialists who have been at the front line of SARS investigation and response since the outbreak began - are attending the two-day event convened by WHO.

The meeting aims to gather expert views about the effectiveness of the response to date and the likely evolution of SARS in both the near future and longer term. The meeting comes at a time when the intense around-the-clock emergency actions needed to contain the initial outbreaks have slowed, allowing time to assess the evidence that has accumulated and identify gaps in knowledge.

By gathering the views of the world's leading experts, WHO said it hoped to establish a scientific basis for recommending more precise control measures and setting out plans for long-term SARS responses that have the best chance of success.