On 16 October 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 3,105 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection over 24 hours, bringing the reported weekly total to 14,054, a figure 135% higher than the week before. Swiss hospitals are admitting more Covid-19 patients. An additional 68 were admitted over the last 24 hours, according to FOPH. […]
Coronavirus: tough restrictions needed to avoid deaths, says WHO director
Tough restrictions are absolutely necessary to save lives, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned, as a second Covid-19 wave emerges in Europe. “The evolving epidemiological situation in Europe raises great concern: daily numbers of cases are up, hospital admissions are up”, Dr Hans Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, told a news conference on Thursday. […]
Coronavirus: masks sold in Switzerland fail basic tests
Only 4 out of the 16 masks sold in Switzerland that were tested passed all three tests conducted by a textile testing company, according to RTS. The testing, which included tests for air permeability, splash resistance and filtration, was conducted in laboratories run by Testex in Zurich and Vienna at the behest of RTS. Testing […]
Coronavirus: contact tracers now unable to cope in parts of Switzerland
In parts of Switzerland contact tracers can no longer cope with the rising numbers of cases, according the newspaper SonntagsZeitung. Contact tracers have the task of identifying who has been in contact with people testing positive for SARS-CoV-2, contacting those people and requesting they test and self isolate in order to break chains of infection. […]
Coronavirus: record number of new cases reported in Switzerland
On 14 October 2020, the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 2,823 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection over 24 hours, a record number. In addition, FOPH reported 57 new Covid-19 hospital admissions and a further 8 deaths. The number of Covid-19 patients in Swiss hospitals is now 415, according to RTS. A similar number […]
Initiative against Swiss Covid app fails
In July 2020, a group started gathering signatures to launch a public vote to ban Switzerland’s Covid-19 contact tracing app. To launch a referendum in Switzerland organisers must collect 50,000 signatures from eligible voters within 100 days. Organisers of the “Stop Swiss Covid” initiative had until 8 October 2020 to collect 50,000 signatures. According to […]
Coronavirus: more than 4,000 new cases over 3 days in Switzerland
On 12 October 2020, the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 4,068 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection over 72 hours. The latest 3-day infection figure is 2.6 times the number over the same period a week ago. Switzerland’s 7-day rolling average daily new infection number has jumped from 469 to 1,215 in a week. In addition, […]
Switzerland adds 14 more regions to its compulsory quarantine list
On 9 October 2020, Switzerland added 14 new regions to its quarantine list effective from 12 October 2020. People entering Switzerland from an additional 14 nations/regions must now quarantine for 10 days on arrival in Switzerland. On 9 October 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) added the following places to its list: Land […]
Geneva’s public sector plans strike over 1% Covid pay cut
To help balance its books after the economic shock of the coronavirus epidemic, the canton of Geneva decided to cut public sector pay by 1% and adjust pension deductions. The plan, which affects 50,000 public sector workers and aims to help fill a budgetary hole of CHF 501 million, was announced by Geneva’s government in […]
Coronavirus: third of mild cases suffering from Long Covid in Swiss study
An ongoing study by unisanté in Lausanne has found around a third of mild Covid-19 cases in Switzerland were still suffering symptoms two months after infection, a condition known as Long Covid. All of the patients included in the Swiss study had mild symptoms and were not admitted to hospital. Their average age was 40. […]
