Over the 8 months from 1 January and 1 September 2021, close to 10 million doses (9.7 million) of the Moderna (6.4 million) and Pfizer/BioNTech (3.3 million) Covid-19 vaccines were given to more than 5 million people in Switzerland. Over this time there were 6,603 official reports of side effects, which represents 0.07% of doses. […]
Switzerland repatriating 80 Covid-19 patients
80 Covid-19 patients require repatriating to Switzerland. 10% of them require urgent transfer and some need intensive care, reported 20 Minutes. Lukas Engelberger, a director of the association of cantonal health directors, described the situation as complicated and said that it could have been avoided if people had responded to calls to get vaccinated. More […]
Covid patients more seriously ill than earlier waves, says ICU doctor
On 3 September 2021, the head of intensive care (ICU) at the Insel Hospital in Bern told the Berner Zeitung that those currently in hospital with Covid-19 are more seriously ill than during previous waves of Covid-19 infection. Stephan Jakob, head of ICU at the hospital said that of the 7 people currently in intensive […]
Swiss to vote on higher taxes for investors and company owners
On 26 September 2021, Swiss voters will decide whether to introduce a tax increase on money earned from company ownership and investments. The initiative named ‘Reduce tax on salaries, tax capital fairly’ aims to have income derived from investments and company ownership taxed at 150% of the rate applied to other income. The argument put […]
One more reason why Switzerland is so expensive
There are many theories on why the prices of certain goods and services are so high in Switzerland. A well-known economic phenomenon can be added to them. Theories that help to explain Switzerland’s high prices include, import restrictions and tariffs on products in protected industries like agriculture, high Swiss operating costs, anticompetitive deals struck by […]
SWISS considers extending vaccination obligation to passengers
During an RTS interview on the airline’s Covid-19 response SWISS boss Dieter Vranckx discussed how an obligation to vaccinate could be extended to passengers flying on specific routes. On 24 August 2012, Swiss decided to make vaccination mandatory for all cabin crew. According to Vranckx, a similar policy could be applied to passengers on certain […]
Swiss economy bounces back from second Covid slump
Swiss GDP grew by 1.8% in the second quarter of 2021 after contracting by 0.4% in the first quarter of the year, according to figures published by Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs. Much of the bounce back was in the services sector as Covid measures were relaxed. Private consumption recovered strongly and industry also […]
Switzerland imported a quarter of hydro electricity consumed in 2020
To keep the lights on Switzerland imports electricity. In 2020, 24% of the hydro electricity consumed in Switzerland was imported, along with small amounts of wind- and fossil fuel-generated electricity. In 2020, 50% of the electricity consumed in Switzerland came from Swiss hydro production. This was topped up by imports, which boosted hydro-sourced consumption by […]
Swiss meat industry hits back at exclusively vegetarian canteen
Since the beginning of the university year, the canteen at the University of Luzern has offered only vegetarian dishes. Meat, including fish, are now absent from the menu. Luzern is the first university in Switzerland to make such a move as a way to reduce its environmental impact. According to a report by the newspaper […]
Swiss gain weight rapidly during Covid-19 pandemic
Like most of the world, Switzerland has an obesity problem. From 1992 to 2017, obesity in Switzerland rose from 5% to 11% of the population. In addition, a further 31% of the population was considered overweight, bringing the total with a weight problem to 42% of the population. The Covid-19 pandemic has added to the […]
