This week, 10,309 new cases of Covid-19 were reported in Switzerland, down 31% from the 15,024 recorded the week before.
This week there were 35 recorded Covid-19 deaths compared to 38 the week before and the number hospitalised fell from 300 to 223. However, delays in reporting mean recent death and hospitalisation data will be revised upwards when the data comes in.
On Monday, the use of Covid certificates was extended further to include those entering the country. Since 13 September 2021, a valid certificate has been required to enter many places, such as the interior of restaurants.
Swiss authorities want to reduce the risk of a resurgence of cases like last winter. High case numbers in November last year put Switzerland’s health system under severe pressure. Between late September and early November 2020, the number of people in hospital with Covid-19 grew 18-fold. This was Switzerland’s second and worst wave of the pandemic in terms of hospitalisations and deaths. During November 2020, December 2020 and January 2021, close to 7,000 people died.
However, with (55%) of the population fully vaccinated and an even higher percentage of the most vulnerable fully jabbed, a winter as bad as last year is unlikely.
The vast majority of those getting infected, ending up in hospital or dying with Covid-19 now are unvaccinated. More than 90% (201 out of 223) of those hospitalised and 69% (24 out of 35) of those dying this week were unvaccinated.
In terms of hospitalisation, the hardest hit age group is currently those aged 50-59. 54 people in this age band were hospitalised this week. Among those over 49, this age band is the least vaccinated. 33% in their 50s in Switzerland are not yet fully vaccinated, compared to 23% of those in their 60s and 14% of those 70 or over.
More on this:
FOPH data (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
