With a government inoculation program slated to kick off Nov. 1 to contain the spread of influenza A(H1N1), the first batch of the vaccine manufactured by the Swiss-based pharmaceutical firm Novartis arrived in Taiwan Thursday. The first 370,000 doses of vaccine, part of the 5 million doses that Taiwan has purchased from Novartis, will be distributed over the next few days to appointed spots around the country where the public will be able to get shots, said officials of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) under the Cabinet-level Department of Health (DOH). The 5 million doses of vaccine will help meet local demand for about 12 million doses. The DOH will use the Novartis vaccine in the initial stages of the inoculation program, as locally produced vaccine will not be available until mid-November. A day earlier, DOH Minister Yaung Chih-liang hailed the mid-term results of human clinical testing of H1N1 vaccine produced by Adimmune Corp., Taiwan's sole human vaccine manufacturer, saying that the Adimmune vaccine is in no way inferior to H1N1 vaccine marketed by foreign firms. According to Kang Chao-chou, chief of the DOH's Bureau of Pharmaceutical Affairs, the relevant data on the mid-term results will be published only after being confirmed by a screening committee and conclusions will be submitted to the CDC. A complete evaluation report on the efficacy and safety of the Adimmune vaccine is expected to be available in mid-November, Kang said. Meanwhile, the number of deaths from influenza A(HIN1) had hit 26 in Taiwan as of Wednesday, with a 39-year-old woman from Taipei County listed as the latest victim. 