On April 7, the Health Bureau of Taichung City Government received a notification from the Northern District Control Center of the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control that a male in his 50s had returned to Taiwan from Southeast Asia on April 7 with symptoms of muscle pain and headache, and was tested positive for NS1 rapid test at the airport. On April 8, he presented with fever, muscle pain and other symptoms, and returned to his place of residence to recuperate after seeking medical attention, and was diagnosed with dengue fever in the afternoon of April 8 (Taichung's second case from abroad). In order to protect the public's health, Taichung City Government is doing its best to prevent the spread of the epidemic. The district-level prevention and control centers have carried out surveys on the density of vector mosquitoes around the places where the cases live, breeding places elimination, chemical control, and public health education.

According to the Health Bureau, dengue fever is an environmental disease. On April 1 of this year, the "Taichung City Dengue Fever, Chikungunya and Zika Virus Infection" breeding place elimination and epidemic prevention measures were announced. If a person is found to have failed to take the initiative to properly manage and remove stagnant water containers and stagnant water areas in Taichung City, resulting in the breeding of vector mosquito larvae (wiggler), he or she will be fined from NT$3,000 to NT$15,000 in accordance with the Communicable Disease Control Act, and if the person fails to improve after being notified, he or she may be fined repeatedly. If the person refuses, avoids or obstructs dengue fever control workers, he or she may be fined from NT$60,000 to NT$300,000 in accordance with the law. The recent afternoon showers make it easy for vector mosquitoes to breed in water containers or in empty houses, vacant lots, and abandoned factories. The Taichung City Government urges the public to be vigilant, and to follow the 4 steps of "inspecting, pouring, cleaning and brushing" immediately after the rain, to eliminate indoor and outdoor breeding places and prevent dengue fever together.

Director of Health Bureau, TSENG, TZU-CHAN said, according to the data of the Taiwan Centers for Disease Control, there have been 22 cases of dengue fever from abroad this year, mainly from Southeast Asia, including Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam and other countries. With the lifting of border restrictions and the increase in the frequency of overseas travel, the risk of cases from abroad continues to rise. People are urged to wear thin, light-colored, long-sleeved clothing and pants to protect themselves from mosquitoes and to use mosquito repellent that contains DEET ingredients when traveling to Southeast Asia and other areas where dengue fever is prevalent.

The Health Bureau explained that the Taichung City Government has implemented a notification incentive system for doctors and the public in order to prevent and control dengue fever. If a doctor finds a suspected dengue fever case among the public residing or domiciled in Taichung, if the doctor meets the criteria of completing notification, rapid testing, and sampling, and if the test result is positive for the first 50 cases, the notifying doctor will receive a NT$1,000 incentive gift voucher for each case, and the incentive is not limited to one time.

In addition, if the public takes the initiative to report fever at the airport screening station, or takes the initiative to seek medical attention and inform travel history within 3 days of the onset of the disease, the first 50 people who are diagnosed with dengue fever will receive a NT$500 incentive gift certificate. People are urged to take the initiative to inform airport quarantine personnel if they have fever, headache, muscle aches and pains, etc. when they return to the country, and to seek medical attention as soon as possible if they develop symptoms within two weeks after returning to the country, and to inform medical personnel of their travel and contact histories proactively to facilitate early diagnosis, notification, and treatment by doctors.