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Switzerland calls up army reservists to help in coronavirus crisis

Switzerland has called up thousands of army reservists to help in the battle against coronavirus, the first time it has done so since World War II.

Published: 22 March 2020 19:44 CET

Switzerland calls up army reservists to help in coronavirus crisis

A member of the Swiss Army deployed to support public hospitals as part of a historic mobilisation for Swiss Army since the Second World War, against the spread of the COVID-19, the novel coronavirus.

In order to relieve hospitals under pressure, the army announced it could mobilise up to 8,000 personnel.

Lieutenant-Colonel Raoul Barca, in charge of a battalion of 750 soldiers, told AFP it was the first time that reservists had been called up since 1939.

“The situation is serious… the coming days will be critical for the health care system,” director-general of health for the Geneva canton Adrien Bron told reporters on Sunday.

Schools, universities and creches have been closed in Switzerland as part of measures to limit the transmission of the virus.

The country has recorded 7,000 infections including 60 deaths from the disease.

It has so far avoided confinement restrictions adopted by other countries but on Friday announced that it would ban all gatherings of more than five people, and that anyone standing closer than two metres to others risked a fine.

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Could glasses and contact lenses soon be covered by Swiss health insurance?

Green Party Federal Councillor Katharina Prelicz-Huber revealed in an interview with newspaper 20 Minuten this week that the Federal Parliament had tabled a motion to include prescription glasses and contact lenses in Switzerland’s mandatory health insurance scheme.

Prelicz-Huber stated: “The purpose of compulsory health insurance is to provide the services you need to get or stay healthy,”

The motion forms part of the legislation that will be voted on during the 2024 summer session of the Federal Council.

Proposed changes

According to Switzerland’s peak optician body, 4 in 5 Swiss wear glasses or contact lenses at some point.

It’s no surprise that statistics repository, Statista, projects the Swiss eyewear industry to be worth €1.37 billion by 2028.

Currently, glasses and contact lenses are covered for up to 180 francs for children until age eighteen, if they are proscribed by a doctor.

Adults can also claim money back for glasses and contact lenses – however, they must be suffering from one of a short list of specific conditions such as keratoconus – where the cornea is distorted – or severe myopia, otherwise known as near-sightedness.

They must also have been specifically prescribed them by a doctor or optometrist.

Otherwise, supplemental optical insurance must be purchased in Switzerland to ensure you can recoup the cost.

Under the Green Party proposal, glasses, contact lenses, and other visual aids would be covered, regardless of age.

Rising premiums prompt opposition

Not everybody agrees with the proposal.

The right-wing SVP has already spoken out against it, with Federal Councillor Diana Gutjahr arguing: “If we seriously want to slow down the burdensome and constantly rising health costs for the benefit of the population, we [must] show the political will not to constantly expand the benefits of compulsory health insurance.”

A spokesman for the the health insurance advocacy group Santesuisse, Matthias Müller, echoed Gutjahr, claiming that insurance constitutes “financing for extraordinary events such as illness.”

“If almost everyone benefits from a certain service, it is no longer an insurance benefit.”

A date for the vote has yet to be announced.

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