From Thursday, only the mask requirement in public transport and in hospitals as well as isolation will apply. All other corona measures have been lifted. Nevertheless, Federal President Ignazio Cassis urged caution: “We should not be too enthusiastic.”
Almost all measures are gone, but the mask will stay with us for a while.
Pandemic of the century, the biggest crisis since the Second World War – how do you end a major collective event for which no superlative was too high for two years? Switzerland is doing it the Swiss way. With composure – and with a doctor who is currently the political leader in the state government. “Of course we don’t have to be afraid of a return to normality,” said Federal President Ignazio Cassis to the media on Wednesday. And then the Helvetian but, this conjunction of self-discipline and restraint. “But,” says Cassis, “we shouldn’t be too enthusiastic either.”
It seems as if the whole country feels like it’s just after a divorce: people mourn a situation that has long since become unbearable. Several journalists wanted to know whether operators of private facilities can continue to use the Covid certificate. The more drastic the measures, the more unpleasant the withdrawal symptoms for some. This pandemic will leave its mark, mental and intellectual long-Covid consequences.
Switzerland has been in crisis mode for two years. On February 25, 2020, the first positive corona case was reported from Ticino, Cassis’ home canton. Since then, the country has experienced all the ups and downs, said Health Minister Alain Berset. The government negotiated corona policy 85 times in its meetings, then communicated 71 times. On Wednesday, at times around 8,000 people joined the press conference via the live stream. For the time being it will be the last on this subject. And the question has been in the room for weeks: what comes after that?
Back to normal on April 1st
From Thursday, a certificate will no longer be required to visit restaurants, cinemas, fitness studios, indoor swimming pools and other facilities. The 2-G and 2-G+ rules have had their day. Those who have neither recovered nor been vaccinated can participate in social life again. The Federal Council is also lifting the restrictions on private meetings. Now people are allowed to come together again at home and have a party without state requirements. This is possible because, according to the Federal Council, it is unlikely that the hospitals will be overburdened.
The state no longer stands in the way of workers returning to work. The federal government lifts the recommendation to work from home. From now on, employers will decide whether to work from home and wear a mask at work. The rules to protect particularly vulnerable people will remain in force until the end of March. The cantons can adopt stricter measures.
The mask is disappearing from large parts of public life. Visiting shops, restaurants, cinemas, museums and events is again possible without a mask. On the other hand, masks are still compulsory in public transport and in hospitals and similar facilities. The authorities will also continue to order the isolation of people who have tested positive. The Federal Council does not yet want to hand over responsibility to those affected.
The government justifies this with the continued very high virus circulation and the risk of severe courses. Isolation and the obligation to wear masks in certain places also have an expiry date: they should end on March 31 at the latest. The Federal Council does not rule out an earlier end in the event of favorable developments.
The Federal Council wants to complete the symbolically important exit from the special situation on April 1st. Then the Covid-19 regulation should expire and Switzerland will be back to normal after around two years of the pandemic.
Scientific task force disbands
Because Covid certificates are still required for trips abroad, the corresponding app will remain in place. Switzerland will continue to issue certificates recognized by the EU. On the other hand, Swiss Covid certificates, which were created on the basis of antibody tests, lose their purpose with the lifting of the certificate obligation. They will no longer be issued.
Proof of vaccination, recovery or a negative Covid test is no longer required to enter Switzerland. An exception applies to people from countries with worrying virus variants. However, there is currently no country on this list.
With the return to normal, the advisory mandate of the scientific task force ends prematurely and at their request, as Health Minister Alain Berset said. He politely thanked the media for the work done by the scientists, but also let it be known that there were sometimes major differences. Individual members of the advisory group will continue to be available to the Federal Council in an advisory capacity.
What’s coming in autumn?
So is that it? Does it just need a task force of historians and sociologists to take over instead of the epidemiologists and virologists? If the estimates are correct and ten percent of the population actually get infected every week, then the virus will be over in Switzerland by the end of March. At least that’s how Alain Berset calculates it. One must assume a very high immunity in the population. But what you don’t know: how long does this protection last?
Because the Corona pandemic in this country has shown that the number of cases increases when the leaves fall from the trees, the reservations of the cautious cannot be dismissed out of hand. And one wonders whether the Federal Council will then be ready. Ignazio Cassis addressed the concerns by declaring them to be normal.
The Federal President said that the Federal Council was not only willing but obliged to act if the epidemiological situation changed. It doesn’t matter whether this is in the spring, in the fall or in ten years’ time. New virus mutations or new diseases, Courant says that is normal in a society in which people share almost everything, including the pathogens.
Cassis’ historical digression
Instead of looking too far into the future, Cassis ventured with a brief historical digression. The history of the pandemics shows that people have always been divided with regard to the state’s crisis management. Everything is going too fast for some, too slow for others. This criticism has accompanied the government throughout the last two years. There will also be criticism in the future, said Cassis, which is also good in a democracy. The Federal President spoke about the pandemic as if it were a rare but common occurrence. As if she were part of normality.