Tag Archive: Health

Long Covid symptoms persist beyond 7 months, according to new data

Recent research based on information from 3,762 Long Covid sufferers shows most still have symptoms after 7 monthsThe study uses patient-driven research and is based on a survey created by a team of patients with COVID-19 who are members of the Body Politic online COVID-19 support group.

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Covid: Switzerland grants approval for second vaccine

On 12 January 2021, Swissmedic, the Swiss agency for the authorisation and supervision of pharmaceutical products, approved a second vaccination against the SARS-CoV-2 virus for the Swiss market.

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Covid: closing Swiss schools one of most effective measures, says study

The number of Covid cases went down significantly in Switzerland during spring as a result of schools closing, according to a study by ETH Zurich, reported RTS. Researchers at the university analysed anonymised mobile phone data of 1.5 billion movements of the Swiss population between 10 February and 26 April 2020. They used this data to calculate how much certain measures reduced mobility and contact.

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Covid: fast-spreading UK strain detected in seven Swiss cantons

The fast spreading strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus discovered in the UK has now been detected in seven Swiss cantons, according to the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), reported RTS.

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Errors made managing pandemic, admits new Swiss president

According to RTS, Guy Parmelin, Switzerland’s president since 1 January 2021, told the newspaper SonntagsBlick, that between July and September the government underestimated the pandemic.

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Covid: 9,665 new cases over 4 days in Switzerland

Over the 4 days to 4 January 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported  9,665 new cases and 189 deaths bringing Switzerland’s Covid-19 death toll to 7,831 (confirmed 7,271). 

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Covid: restaurants and cafés to close across French-speaking Switzerland

Restaurants and cafés will progressively close once more across French-speaking Switzerland starting in the canton of Jura on Tuesday 22 December 2020.

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Covid: retroactive quarantine for those arriving from the UK and South Africa

Following the discovery of a new, more contagious variant of the coronavirus in the UK and South Africa, the Federal Council today decided to take steps to prevent the further spread of this new virus strain.

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Covid: Switzerland suspends flights from the UK and South Africa

Late on 20 December 2020, the Swiss government decided to suspend flights to Switzerland from the UK and South Africa following news of the discovery a new variant of SARS-CoV-2 virus.

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Covid, December 18: 22 percent of Geneva tests positive for antibodies

An update to an antibody study conducted by HUG and UNIGE suggests that 22% of Geneva’s population had been exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus by December 2020.

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Covid: Swiss becoming more skeptical of vaccines

Mistrust of vaccines against Covid-19 continues to rise in Switzerland, according to a recently published survey.

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Covid, December 16: declaring extraordinary situation pointless right now, says Swiss minister

Speaking to broadcaster RTS, Swiss health minister Alain Berset said the pandemic was under control and that it currently made no sense to declare an extraordinary situation, a provision in Swiss law on managing infectious diseases that allows the Federal Council to take charge of the situation over and above cantonal governments.

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Switzerland’s population happy with the health system, according to survey

Switzerland’s health system is rated highly by the public, according to the latest survey conducted in eleven countries by the Commonwealth Fund Foundation.

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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.

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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 RSI.

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Covid, December 10: 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.

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Switzerland and the pandemic: does the economy matter more?

For a nation that prides itself on being on the global forefront of new technologies and science, particularly health care, Switzerland has an astoundingly poor record for dealing with Covid-19. The Lake Geneva region, which borders locked-down France, ranks as one of the worst coronavirus hotspots in Europe.

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Covid, November 27: French-speaking Switzerland to reopen retail and restaurants

The SARS-CoV-2 virus has hit French-speaking Switzerland harder than the rest of Switzerland both before and since summer.

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Covid, November 24: Switzerland’s infection rate continued to slow over the weekend

Over the weekend, Switzerland averaged 3,250 new daily recorded cases (9,751 over 72 hours). This represents a significant drop from the daily peak of 10,128 cases reported on 5 November 2020.

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Covid: only the vaccinated get to travel abroad, suggests Swiss infectious disease expert

Resistance to vaccinations is significant in Switzerland. A survey done in November 2020 suggests only 16% of the population would get vaccinated immediately if there was an approved Covid-19 vaccine, reported 20 Minutes.

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