Taichung, June 16 (CNA) Two people in their 90s have passed away after getting an AstraZeneca vaccine shot Tuesday, but it is not clear if their deaths resulted from getting the vaccine, Taichung authorities said Wednesday.
The Taichung Fire Department said Wednesday it had received a report around 9 p.m. Tuesday that a 90-year-old woman in the city's Nantun District had developed a fever and lost consciousness after receiving an AZ vaccine jab that morning.
The woman was immediately sent to a nearby hospital but was later pronounced dead at around 10 p.m., according to the department.
The department received another report at around 7 a.m. Wednesday of a 94-year-old man in the city's West District being found by his family without any vital signs.
The man, who had also received an AZ vaccine shot Tuesday morning, was later pronounced dead by medics when they arrived at the scene.
Taichung's Health Bureau said it had received reports of the deaths of two people after getting a COVID-19 vaccine shot, and that it was trying to learn more about their medical conditions.
The bureau said the 90-year-old woman had Alzheimer's and had been hospitalized due to a urinary tract infection and bone fracture over the past three months.
Initial test results for the woman showed she had myocardial ischemia, which occurs when the flow blood to one's heart is reduced, preventing the heart muscle from receiving enough oxygen.
A posthumous COVID-19 rapid screening turned out to be negative.
The 94-year-old man had Alzheimer's, diabetes, and high blood pressure.
The bureau said it will compile all records related to the two cases and send them to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) to have the central authorities determine if the deaths were related to the vaccine.
The bureau will also help their families file for compensation from the central government. If their deaths are later determined to have been caused by the vaccine, their families will be given up to NT$6 million (US$217,002) in compensation each.
Following the arrival of 1.24 million AZ vaccine doses donated by the Japanese government on June 4, Tuesday was the first day that seniors 75 years old and over, workers at long-term care facilities, and kidney dialysis patients in Taiwan were eligible to be vaccinated.
Many local governments decided, however, to prioritize people aged 80 and over, in light of the limited number of doses and the current high demand.
In Taichung, seniors 85 and older are eligible to receive the shots from Tuesday to Thursday. The city said it had received 75,300 doses of the AZ vaccine from the central government so far.
The city has not yet make public the number of vaccine doses it administered on Tuesday, but local media said the number was around 10,000.
