Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

HEALTH

Switzerland opens first drive-through coronavirus testing centre

The central Swiss canton of Lucerne will open the first drive-through testing centre for coronavirus in the country.

Published: 24 March 2020 17:01 CET
Switzerland opens first drive-through coronavirus testing centre
A drive-through testing centre in the United States. Photo: DREW ANGERER / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP

The drive-through screening facility will open in Lucerne on Wednesday at the Alpenquai cantonal school. 

Those concerned will not simply be able to drive up and ask for a test however as a prior referral from a doctor will be necessary. 

EXPLAINED: Why does Switzerland have the second-highest rate of confirmed coronavirus cases per capita?

Drivers receive a mouth swab from an employee of the testing facility through an open window of the car. The tested person will not need to leave the vehicle. 

The drive-through facility lets ten tests be taken per hour, rather than just one as is the case in existing hospital facilities. Results are set to be available in a day. 

The risk for medical professionals is also lower with drive-through testing. 

The State Chancellery has lauded the new regime, saying it is the “first major inpatient test option outside of hospitals”. 

While drive-through testing has been put in place elsewhere such as in South Korea and the United States, the Lucerne drive-through centre is the first of its kind in Switzerland. 

Although the canton of Bern indicated on March 16th that it also be opening a drive through testing facility from March 23rd, Swiss daily 20 Minutes reports that this centre has been delayed. 

 

 

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

HEALTH INSURANCE

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

The Swiss health system is ranked among the best in the world, but some essentials, like glasses, aren't automatically covered by health insurance. That could soon change, however

Published: 16 May 2024 15:06 CEST
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. 

SHOW COMMENTS