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HEALTH

Coronavirus: Net migration to Switzerland to fall to record lows

Net migration to Switzerland is set to fall to below 50,000 for the first time due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, a new report has found.

Published: 16 September 2020 15:55 CEST
Coronavirus: Net migration to Switzerland to fall to record lows
Photo: FABRICE COFFRINI / AFP

The figures come from a report prepared by Credit Suisse looking at the current economic outlook for the country. 

According to the findings, net migration for 2021 will drop to 45,000 – due largely to a depressed job market as a result of the pandemic. 

The number is the lowest level since European Union freedom of movement laws were put in place in 2007. 

The prediction for 2020 is slightly more optimistic, with a net migration of 50,000 – only 3,000 lower than that of 2019. 

While Switzerland’s borders were closed from March 25th to June 8th, the fall in migration was mitigated by a high level of new arrivals in the first quarter of 2020 – along with a 20 percent decline in foreign nationals leaving this year. 

Late in September, Switzerland is set to go to the polls to vote on a referendum to restrict migration. 

EXPLAINED: Switzerland's referendum to restrict EU migration 

The ‘moderate immigration limitation initiative' will restrict EU freedom of movement in Switzerland.

 

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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. 

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