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HEALTH

‘We have enough tests’: Switzerland calls on Swiss to get tested

Swiss health officials have urged anyone experiencing symptoms to get tested. Switzerland currently tests less per positive case than most European countries.

Published: 24 November 2020 17:17 CET
'We have enough tests': Switzerland calls on Swiss to get tested
A coronavirus testing sign in the UK. Photo: BEN STANSALL / AFP

Despite strong test capacity, the Swiss populace appears reluctant to get tested. 

Switzerland has one of the lowest test positivity rates in Europe – meaning that fewer people are tested for every positive case. 

After lagging behind the majority of Europe in testing, Switzerland has unveiled a new campaign to encourage members of the public to get tested. 

READ: Why does Switzerland carry out so few coronavirus tests?

Entitled ‘Have symptoms: Get tested’ the campaign encourages anyone experiencing “fever, cough, sore throat, shortness of breath, chest pain, loss of smell and / or taste” to get tested immediately. 

 

 

The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) is concerned that too few people have been getting tested for the virus and hopes to boost testing rates. 

The Swiss GP and Child Medicine Association believes that Swiss people either fail to take their symptoms seriously or don’t think they need to take a test. 

“One possible explanation for this development is that, due to the currently slightly decreasing number of cases, the need for tests, even with only mild symptoms of the disease, is not sufficiently recognised by the population,” the Association wrote. 

 

‘We have enough tests’

In launching the campaign, FOPH spokesperson Virginie Masserey said people should not be concerned about a lack of tests – or that they would be forced to pay. 

“There is enough test capacity, so all people with symptoms should be tested,” she said. 

“The tests are free if the criteria is met.”

The FOPH has an online quiz to be completed to see if a test is necessary. 

The test can be completed here in less than 60 seconds and is available in four languages including English, German, Italian and French.

‘Insufficient testing’

Despite the sophistication of its healthcare system and its comparative wealth, Switzerland is still not carrying out enough coronavirus testing. 

According to new figures put together by Our World in Data and published in Switzerland’s Neue Zürcher Zeitung, only four countries – Poland, Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania have tested less than Switzerland over the past seven days. 

The ‘tests per case’ is another way of explaining ‘test positivity’, which refers to how many tests need to be carried out in order to identify one positive coronavirus case. 

According to the NZZ, the data shows that testing in Switzerland is ‘insufficient’, adding that the results are ‘surprising’ and that the data indicates the virus is spreading ‘uncontrollably’. 

This is surprising, because the number of tests in Switzerland is insufficient in relation to the number of infections,” the NZZ writes.  

“This is indicated by the proportion of positive tests. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), this should be less than 5 percent. In Switzerland it is currently still at 22.8 percent and thus at a very high level. 

“This development is alarming, as very high positivity rates indicate that the virus is spreading uncontrollably. 

“The number of tests carried out in Switzerland is therefore not sufficient to be able to understand the infection process.”

More information about testing can be found here. 

 

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HEALTH

Can you avoid high costs of medication in Switzerland by getting drugs abroad?

Most drugs, including generics, are quite a bit cheaper in other countries. But can you have your Swiss prescription filled abroad and bring the meds back?

Published: 3 June 2024 11:30 CEST
Can you avoid high costs of medication in Switzerland by getting drugs abroad?

Not only are medicines more expensive in Switzerland than in many European countries, but their price continues to climb.

For original meds whose patents have expired, Swiss consumers now pay 14.3 percent more than patients abroad.

A year ago, the price difference was 10.8 percent, according to the health insurance association Santésuisse and the group for research-based pharmaceutical companies Interpharma . 

As has been the case for years, the price differences are particularly significant not only for brand drugs, but also for generics and biosimilars.

In a comparison with Germany, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, and Sweden, the price of generics in Switzerland is 45.3 percent higher, while bio-similars cost nearly 30 percent more.

How is the price of drugs determined in Switzerland?

“The price of medicines covered by statutory basic medical insurance is not set on the open market but through complex state interventions,” according to Interpharma.

The prices of drugs that are reimbursed by the basic insurance are controlled by the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH).

In order to determine the price of a medicinal product, the FOPH first considers the cost of therapy with products authorised to treat the same disease.

It then compares the prices of the same products in other countries with a pharmaceutical industry that is economically comparable to that of Switzerland’s.

The final price of drugs reflects Switzerland’s high-cost economy in general: research and development are more expensive in Switzerland than elsewhere, and production costs are higher as well.

Increasing healthcare premiums are an important factor as well.

And prices are set to increase even further. 

FOPH is adapting a new model for calculating the distribution margin. 

A distribution margin is the difference between the distributor’s cost of acquiring goods and the price at which those goods are sold.

From July 1st, 2024, inexpensive medicines whose factory price is less than, or equal to, 15 francs will become more expensive.

This change will affect more than half of medications currently being sold in Switzerland.

As a result of this move, “additional costs of several hundred million will be passed on to patients,” according to Intergenrika, which represents generic drug manufacturers in Switzerland. 

How much cheaper are medicines in neighbour countries?

Swiss-German news platform 20 Minuten compared the prices of some common drugs in Switzerland and Germany. 

For instance, painkiller Ibuprofen (400 milligrams, 20 tablets), costs €3.45 in Germany and 5.90 francs in Switzerland — a surcharge of 71 percent. 

A box of pantoprazole (a popular drug used to treat gastric reflux) is 12.95 francs in Switzerland compared to around 2.62 euros in Germany – a markup of 394 percent.

Similar price disparities also exist between Swiss drugs and those sold in France and Italy.

Can you import medicines to Switzerland to save money?

According to Switzerland’s drug regulatory agency, Swissmedic, people “may import a month’s supply of medicines into Switzerland for their own use but not for third parties”.

This rule is for both residents and tourists.

This means that you are only allowed to bring medications you will use yourself, and not sell them to others.

What about prescription medications?

While doctor’s orders issued within the European Union are valid throughout the EU, Switzerland is not covered by the agreement on recognition of cross-border prescriptions.

Therefore, pharmacists in neighbour countries — or elsewhere within the EU, for that matter — are not obliged to accept prescriptions from Switzerland.

You will have better luck in the UK, however,

From January 1st, 2021, a prescription issued in the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein Norway or Switzerland can be dispensed in the UK if the prescriber is from a medical profession recognised in Britain.

Keep in mind, however, that names of drugs may be different there, so your doctor should write out the prescription accordingly.

Yes, but will your Swiss health insurance pay for the medicines you purchased abroad?

According to FOPH, “the costs will only be reimbursed for medicines that you require because of illness during a temporary stay abroad.”
 
If, on the other hand, you bring in meds for use while in Switzerland, then you must pay for them out of your own pocket.

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