New coronavirus: Situation in Switzerland

Data on confirmed cases of coronavirus infections and deaths due to the disease, the epidemiological situation, information about the tracing app, the search for antibodies, the advisory body, press conferences and news can all be found here.

Confirmed coronavirus infections, deaths, epidemiological situation

17.5.2020, 8 am, cases confirmed in Switzerland:

Tested positive for coronavirus: 30,587 people, 15 more than on the previous day
Deaths: 1,603 people

Situation report on the epidemiological situation in Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein:
German (PDF, 713 kB, 17.05.2020)
French (PDF, 1 MB, 17.05.2020)
Italian (PDF, 821 kB, 17.05.2020)

Data from the situation report:
German (XLS, 18 kB, 17.05.2020)
French (XLS, 17 kB, 17.05.2020)
Italian (XLS, 18 kB, 17.05.2020)

The figures published here are based on notifications received early today from laboratories, medical practices and hospitals. They may therefore differ from those communicated by the cantons.

13.5.2020, Monitoring of suspected cases

Weekly report on reported suspected cases:
German (PDF, 177 kB, 13.05.2020)
French (PDF, 263 kB, 13.05.2020)
Italian (PDF, 174 kB, 13.05.2020)

Data are evaluated and published weekly. The data are based on the Sentinella reporting system: Between 150 and 250 general practitioners voluntarily report the number of patients with suspected cases of COVID-19.

7.5.2020, Interim report regarding the new coronavirus in Switzerland and in the Principality of Liechtenstein

COVID-19: Epidemiological interim report, dated 27 April 2020:
German (PDF, 1 MB, 07.05.2020)
French (PDF, 1 MB, 07.05.2020)
Italian (PDF, 1 MB, 07.05.2020)

The report sets out the general epidemiological situation and the impact of the measures taken by the government with regard to the new coronavirus. It is being released to coincide with the first phase of measures being eased.

Tracing chains of transmission (Contact Tracing)

Identifying persons who have been in contact with someone who has been infected is one of the most effective ways of combating epidemics. This involves tracing and breaking the chain of transmission, by isolating persons who have become ill and placing those who have been in close contact with infected persons in quarantine.

How does contact tracing work?

Contact tracing is detective work. The cantonal authorities are responsible for tracing chains of transmission. This is what they do:

When a person tests positive for the coronavirus:

• The cantonal authorities work with that person to ascertain who they have been in close contact with – in the 48 hours before the symptoms of the disease developed, up to the point at which they went into isolation.
• The authorities notify the persons identified that they may be infected.
• If these persons do not have any symptoms, they must spend ten days in quarantine. If they do not develop any symptoms during this period, they are allowed to leave quarantine.

When a person notified by the authorities already has symptoms of the disease:

• They must go into isolation. If they test positive for the virus, the authorities must also trace the persons they have been in close contact with.

When a person in quarantine develops symptoms of the disease:

• They must go into isolation immediately and get tested for the new coronavirus.
• If they test positive, the persons they have been in close contact with must be traced.
• Because the person is already in quarantine, they are unlikely to have been in close contact with many other people, if any at all. Quarantine has already broken the chain of transmission.

The public has complied with the measures, so tracing is possible again

As a result of the lockdown introduced by the Federal Council, and because people in Switzerland have followed the rules on hygiene and social distancing, the daily number of new infections has fallen. This means it is now possible to use contact tracing to contain the spread of the new coronavirus. A smartphone app (see next section) will also be made available to help contain the spread of the virus.

Smartphone app to help break chains of infection

An app for smartphones (iOS/Android) will contribute to containing the spread of the new coronavirus. It will help break new chains of infection, and will complement the more conventional contact tracing being carried out by the cantons. The app will undergo rigorous testing over the new few weeks.

The Federal Council adopted a temporary ordinance on 13 May to cover this phase. It is based on the Data Protection Act and regulates the organisation, operation, and use of the app, as well as the data it processes, for the duration of the test phase. Parliament is due to debate and adopt the comprehensive legislation during the summer session in June in order that the app can be used by the public.

Read the FAQs about the App

However, even when the app is in use, it is vital that we continue to comply with the rules on hygiene and and social distancing. By combining the use of the app, conventional contact tracing and respecting the rules, we hope to prevent the virus from spreading again.

How does the app work?

The app uses Bluetooth technology to detect other smartphones nearby and measure how long they are in the vicinity. It registers any other phone with the app installed that is less than two metres away for more than 15 minutes. If a person using the app tests positive for the coronavirus, they can enter a code into their app. This then warns all other app users registered as having been nearby when the person was infectious.

Having received a warning message, people can then:

• get tested immediately if they have symptoms of the disease or develop them;
• avoid any contact with others as they might be infectious themselves.

Use of the app will be voluntary and free of charge. The more people that install and use the app, the more effectively it will help contain the coronavirus.

The app does not record any data

The app works on a decentralised basis: it does not collect or store any of the users’ personal usage or location data. The system is designed to ensure anonymity. No one will be able to use the app to reconstruct who was in contact with whom.

We will develop the app in collaboration with the Federal Office of Information Technology, Systems and Telecommunication FOITT and the Swiss federal institutes of technology in Lausanne and Zurich (EPFL and ETHZ). It meets the highest privacy protection requirements.

Search for antibodies

How many people in Switzerland have already had the new coronavirus? Does having the infection and recovering from it mean you are then immune? A national study by the Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), a network comprising 12 Swiss universities, has launched a national study to find the answers to these questions.

Based on a proposal by Professor Milo Puhan, Head of the Institute of Epidemiology at the University of Zurich, the study aims to establish:

• how many people in Switzerland have already been infected with new coronavirus;
• if having the infection creates immunity from renewed infection;
• if so, how long this immunity lasts.

This will involve testing and examining around 25,000 members of the general public and people in specific professional groups at regular intervals up to October 2020. A blood test determines whether a person has had the virus: the presence of antibodies in the blood indicates that they have.

We are providing funding and expertise for this study. The findings will provide valuable information which will help the cantons and the federal government to determine how to proceed in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, and to decide on a vaccination programme in Switzerland at a later date.

Link: https://www.corona-immunitas.ch/

Scientific advisory body

The Confederation has set up a scientific advisory body, the Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force. Its members comprise researchers from across the Swiss scientific community. The Task Force is headed by Matthias Egger, president of the National Research Council of the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). The mandate comes from the Federal Council Coronavirus Crisis Unit KSBC, the FOPH and the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation SERI.

Through its work the Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force will help to overcome the coronavirus pandemic. It is providing its expertise in the fields of science and research to the relevant political authorities.

Further information can be found on the website of the Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force.

Managing the coronavirus crisis: federal government wants to involve organisations and groups

The Federal Council Coronavirus Crisis Unit (KSBC) has set up the COVID-19 Civil Society Point of Contact. It offers a platform for exchanges with civil society. Non-profit and politically independent organisations and groups can submit concerns and ideas, which the Point of Contact then gathers and examines.

Aims of the COVID-19 Civil Society Point of Contact:

• Involving civil society in managing the coronavirus crisis
• Facilitating and improving dialogue between the Federal Administration and civil society
• Harnessing the potential of civil society initiatives
• Helping to manage the coronavirus crisis

The Civil Society Point of Contact looks forward to receiving your concerns and ideas. You can find further information and a contact form on the COVID-19 Civil Society Point of Contact website.