Le Matin. A mild March has meant early pollen. Regula Gehrig from Swiss Meteo told aha!, a Swiss allergy specialist, that birch pollen will arrive a week earlier this year and last until May. “Birch pollen contains proteins which trigger strong allergies” said Georg Schäppi, a director at aha! And because the pollen particles are relatively […]
The real reason Swiss drugs are so expensive
24 Heures. In Switzerland, a 16-pack of 500mg Dafalgan Odis (Paracetamol) costs CHF 8.60. A comparable French product, Doliprane, costs 1.12 euros for a box of 12 tablets the same size. 12 tablets of 500 mg of Algifor (Ibuprofen) costs CHF 9.90 compared to 2.50 euros for a similar box of Advil in France. Another product, Nivea […]
Young man dies of measles in Switzerland
20 Minutes. “This is a tragic but fortunately rare case in Switzerland” Daniel Koch, of the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) told the Tages-Anzeiger this morning, regarding the death of a young man in January. This is the first measles death in Switzerland since 2009 when a 12 year old girl died in Geneva. The FOPH […]
Swiss report recommends eating more foods typically high in saturated fats
On 16 March 2017, the results of a survey on Swiss eating habits were released. The survey, dubbed MenuCH, quizzed 2,000 Swiss residents between the ages of 18 and 75 on what they eat. The report shows that Swiss meat consumption is at unhealthy levels. Average weekly consumption of 780g far exceeds the recommended level […]
Low strength cannabis sales explode across Switzerland
According to an article in Tribune de Genève, some cigarette vendors are desperately searching for supplies of the drug to meet demand. Recently kiosques in Geneva started selling low strength cannabis like they sell cigarettes. Some kiosque owners are over the moon, while others desperately search for a supplier. One vendor told Tribune de Genève: […]
Government stops tax rises on Swiss cigarettes
Swiss cigarette prices will not rise over the coming years unless manufacturers increase the underlying price. On Tuesday, Switzerland’s Council of States (upper house), withheld permission to allow the Federal Council (cabinet) to continue hiking the tax on smokes. From 2005 to 2015, the price of Switzerland’s best selling cigarettes rose from CHF 6 to […]
Swiss drug prices more than double european average – “Mr Price” takes aim
Switzerland’s public price watchdog chief, Stefan Meierhans, also know as “Mr Price”, has taken aim at high Swiss drug prices. A report published last week shows prices of generic drugs are nearly 2.4 times more expensive in Switzerland compared to the average price across 15 european countries. Generic drugs in the Netherlands cost 8% of what […]
Soft drink tax proposal criticized by industry
20 Minutes. Vaud state councillor Pierre-Yves Maillard has proposed a new cantonal tax on soft drinks to fund dental care. The plan would combine the money raised by this tax with a new social security tax of up to 0.06% of salaries. The combined projected CHF 38 million collected, would fund 50% of dental care costs […]
Scabies reappears in Swiss schools
20 Minutes. Scabies, a disease also known as the seven year itch, has reappeared in Swiss schools. The contagious skin infection is cased by a mite and is spread through skin contact and occasionally by sharing clothes. In French it is called gale. In german it goes by the name of Krätze. Symptoms include intense itching and a […]
Swiss fact: one in seven Swiss drink no alcohol
A recent report1 shows that around 1 in 7 Swiss drink no alcohol. Of the 13.8% who avoid alcohol completely, 6.5% have avoided it all their lives, while a further 7.3% are former drinkers who haven’t consumed alcohol over the last 12 months. The number of Swiss non-drinkers has climbed since 2011 when only 11.7% […]
