Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

HEALTH

Will Switzerland introduce coronavirus testing at airports to cut quarantine?

Zurich Airport is considering following the lead of Germany and Austria in introducing rapid coronavirus tests which can cut quarantine times.

Published: 24 July 2020 16:23 CEST
Updated: 25 July 2020 10:14 CEST
Will Switzerland introduce coronavirus testing at airports to cut quarantine?
A Swiss airline at Zurich Airport. Image: MICHAEL BUHOLZER / AFP

These tests have already been introduced at airports throughout Germany and Austria and have been successful in cutting quarantine times. 

In Germany and Austria, passengers who receive a negative test can enter the country. Late on Friday, Germany announced that testing would be free for all returnees. 

READ: How to get tested for coronavirus at Germany's airports 

Results are available within a few hours, although there have been concerns about the reliability of the tests. 

Zurich Airport has made coronavirus testing voluntarily available, but Swiss politicians have argued that the tests should be made compulsory. 

FDP National Councillor Matthias Jauslin argued that all returnees must be mandatorily tested, allowing them to return to work without quarantine as long as they test negative. 

READ MORE: ‘Anyone could be quarantined': Switzerland repeats advice not to travel abroad 

SVP National Councillor Verena Herzog agreed, although she said it was of crucial importance that the tests were reliable. 

Jasmin Bodmer, a spokesperson for Zurich Airport, has said for now the tests – which cost CHF180 – will remain voluntary. 

“So far there has been no federal requirement for rapid corona tests.”

As it stands, even those who test negative at Zurich Airport are still required to complete a ten-day quarantine if they have returned from a high-risk country. 

Between 30 and 80 tests are carried out each day.

Editor's note: Please keep in mind that this article, as with all of our guides, are to provide assistance only. They are not intended to take the place of official legal advice. 

 

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