Emergency approval of vaccines is not legally possible in Switzerland, according to Swissmedic, Switzerland’s drug approval body. However, Swissmedic says it is working closely with international partner authorities and is urgently reviewing all applications for Covid-19 vaccines and processing the information as it becomes available. Emergency approvals for the use of vaccines fall short of […]
Covid: Swiss deaths remain high as new cases rise
This week the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 548 Covid-19 deaths, 8% fewer than last week (598). Hospital staff reported they were suffering from exhaustion. Switzerland’s hospitalised Covid-19 patient numbers remain high. There are currently 2,878 hospitalised, a figure similar to the end of last week (2,866). The number is predicted rise to […]
Covid: why have Switzerland’s restrictions not worked?
Didier Pittet, head of the infection prevention and control at Geneva’s HUG hospital, responds to this question in an interview on RTS. According to Pittet, the virus is now widespread and testing is only picking up around a third of actual cases, leaving many undetected patients to potentially spread the disease. Pittet described the current […]
Covid vaccinations will be free in Switzerland
On 9 December 2020, Switzerland’s federal government adopted a change to the rules on healthcare to make vaccination against the SARS-CoV-2 virus free to the public. The cost of vaccinations will be covered by health insurance, the cantons and Switzerland’s federal government. Early on in the pandemic in March 2020, the Swiss government decided the […]
Italy suspends rail links with Switzerland
Update: It appears rail connections between Italy and Switzerland will not be interrupted after Switzerland’s president and the Italian minister of transport spoke on Wednesday. Solutions have been identified to ensure compliance with Italy’s anti-COVID measures. Rail links are expected to gradually return to normal over the next few days, according to a report by […]
Covid: Bern to consider new measures as cases rise again
On 8 December 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Council announced it was considering further restrictions starting from 12 December 2020 and running until 20 January 2021. The Federal Council announced that it plans to harmonise and reinforce measures recently introduced by the cantons. It will meet on 11 December 2020 and again on 18 December 2020 to […]
Covid: cantons asked to do more after another deadly week in Switzerland
Today, Switzerland’s Federal Council called on cantons with increasing case numbers to take immediate action. It described the epidemiological situation as extremely serious. This week the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 598 Covid-19 deaths, 11% fewer than last week (675), but a figure that remains tragically high. Switzerland’s Covid-19 death toll has now […]
Covid: new restrictions for shops, restaurants and ski resorts
Today, Switzerland’s Federal Council announced new restrictions for shops, restaurants and ski resorts applicable from 9 December 2020. New daily cases remain stubbornly high at around 4,000 a day in Switzerland with an overall 14-day case rate of 595 per 100,000. Over summer, Switzerland’s trigger rate for requiring travellers entering Switzerland to quarantine was 60 […]
New study reveals hidden long-term damage from Covid-19
A recent study at the University of Sheffield in the UK has detected previously unseen lung damage in long-term Covid-19 patients using a new scanning technique. The technique, which involves hyperpolarised xenon gas and MRI scanning to allow imaging of oxygen uptake in the lungs, has identified weakened lung function in Covid-19 patients not visible […]
Covid: daily cases down but level “not very reassuring”
On 1 December 2020, Switzerland reported 3,802 new cases of Covid-19 over 24 hours. The figure follows a daily average of around 2,900 over the weekend. The lower case figure represents progress in reducing the spread of the virus. 3,802 daily new cases is less than half the 7-day average peak of 8,238 reached on […]
