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Are blood tests helpful?
The blood test is not a test of immunity, says Patrick Mathys, head of the crisis management and international cooperation section, BAG. All he can say is that the person came into contact with the virus. Furthermore, these tests have not yet been validated, so the informative value is limited.
“We have to make visits to nursing homes”
Mathys is asked by a journalist about Swiss nursing homes. In France, measures would have been taken to ensure that two people from families could go to hospitals, and that there was no physical but visual contact for them. An opportunity for Switzerland?
Mathys responds that there are no new recommendations or measures regarding nursing homes and nursing homes. One would have seen that there were broadcasts in homes, sometimes with severe courses. On the other hand, one wants to avoid collateral damage, that is, stop causing psychological damage if family members must stay away. “We definitely have to address the issue.”
221 army members still in quarantine
Raynald Droz, Brigadier, Chief of Command Operations Staff, DDPS: “Currently we have between 300 and 400 people that we can send home from the service on the Corona front. However, they must be available within 24 hours. Of course, that limits the possibilities of study and work.
On the health situation: 221 members of the army are in quarantine, 200 fewer than last week. 55 were positive, there were 100 cured since last week.
Tourism as a transversal sector
“Tourism is an intersectoral industry,” emphasizes Jakob. It makes no sense to say that the xy mountain restaurant will be open thereafter and that cable car access will not be regulated. “Here at Seco we see one of the most pressing requirements: modular collaboration.” Sufficient investment activities are also essential. Long-term measures for tourism should also be developed.
Promote domestic tourism in particular.
In general, it could be said that the Federal Council measures are also open to tourism, says Erik Jakob, head of SECO’s Directorate for the Promotion of Locations. And they would be used a lot. In addition, the hotel industry took smaller specific measures. This is mainly about dealing with aid loans. “In a first phase, a demand increase program should aim to promote domestic tourism,” says Jakob.
The full recovery of tourism will not be achieved until 2022
Erik Jakob, head of the SECO Directorate for the Promotion of Local Businesses, deals with tourism. The crisis in tourism affects business tourism, such as vacation tourism and mountain tourism, that is, the entire spectrum. “At Seco we assume that tourism will only recover gradually in the second half of the year and only in 2021. A full normalization of demand should not be achieved until 2022.”
There would be a psychological factor on the part of consumers, until the fear of health risks has been overcome and people actually travel again. Furthermore, the strong Swiss franc will again have negative effects.
In 2020, El Seco expects a decrease in tourism sales of 20 to 25 percent, provided that the measures are relaxed and there are no relapses.
Downward trend in Switzerland
Mathys: “In Switzerland, we count 225,000 cases, of which almost 28,000 positive cases and 1,142 deaths. A total of more than 3,300 people are hospitalized. The numbers are decreasing. We have had 200-400 new cases in the past few days. We are seeing a trend to decrease further. The next challenges: preparation of the relaxation measures by BAG with all the partners involved. »
Numbers continue to rise rapidly worldwide
Patrick Mathys, Section Head of Crisis Management and International Cooperation, BAG opens the press conference with a look at the international situation. “The number of cases continues to increase rapidly,” he says. Worldwide there are 2.4 million confirmed cases, unfortunately 165,000 deaths are registered worldwide.
The United States is an absolute access point. From yesterday to today, they counted 25,000 confirmed cases and 1,500 deaths. The numbers are also increasing in Europe. However, the speed has slowed down, which can be seen in Italy and Germany. In Austria, for the first time, there are 100 new infections.
Federal experts are now providing information
We welcome the live ticker for the federal media conference. The following experts provide information on the situation of the crown in Switzerland:
- Patrick Mathys, Head of the Crisis Management and International Cooperation Section, BAG
- Erik Jakob, Head of SECO, WBF
- Raynald Droz, Brigadier, Chief of Operations, General Staff Command, DDPS
Air traffic like in the 1950s
The numbers that the Zurich airport announced in mid-April were dramatic: of the 91 flyers from the main Swiss customer, only six were still operational, and the number of flights fell by almost half compared to the same month of the year. previous.
Airport director Stephan Widrig mentioned the current figures in SRF’s “Daily Talk”, reflecting the airport’s precarious situation. Currently only 10 passenger flights a day would be handled, compared to 700 in normal times. Air traffic had plummeted by more than 95 percent and was comparable to flight movements from Zurich airport in the early 1950s.
Expansion of photovoltaic energy even in the Corona crisis.
46 million Swiss francs more: The federal government is making a special allocation of funds available for new photovoltaic systems. The additional money is intended to prevent PV expansion from halting in the corona crisis.
The Federal Energy Office (SFOE) fears that the expansion of photovoltaic energy may weaken due to the Covid crisis, as it says in a statement. According to the federal government, the number of facilities and the number of registrations for one-time payments increased significantly in the first three months of 2020. “But now builders could postpone their investment decisions and curb positive development so far.”
The special fee will be available in 2020, in addition to the existing annual fee of 330 million Swiss francs for one-time payments for small and large PV systems.
Keystone
“Patience when booking the summer holidays”
French government spokeswoman Sibeth Ndiaye advised the French to be cautious when booking their summer vacation. “I don’t know where we will be in the development of the epidemic, so I prefer to be patient and careful about it,” Ndiaye told Franceinfo.
“I can’t tell you what will happen to a trip to the United States, a trip to an African or Asian country.” Ndiaye also noted that transportation is currently very limited and it is unclear what the situation will look like in the summer.
Keystone
Corona warning app doesn’t work on every fourth smartphone
According to industry experts, the technical concept from Google and Apple for a Corona warning app cannot be implemented on many older smartphone models. “Bluetooth Low Energy” radio technology is not compatible with about two billion devices worldwide, said Neil Shah, an analyst at market research company Counterpoint Research, the “Financial Times.”
The modern variant of Bluetooth does not work in every fourth smartphone. Also, many people only have a simple cell phone or don’t have a cell phone. Many poorer and older people who do not have a (current) smartphone, and who are also among the population groups most at risk for Covid-19, would be left behind.
Live: press conferences at 2 and 3 p.m.
We are broadcasting live today:
- At 2 p.m., press conference with representatives of the federal government (BAG, Seco and VBS) about the current state.
- Health Minister Alain Berset reported on his visit to the canton of Grisons at 3 p.m.
Czech Republic discusses border closure
Life in the Czech Republic is gradually returning to normal. However, the length of time that borders should remain closed to travelers remains controversial: “I consider that borders should remain closed for one year, but not for two years,” President Milos Zeman said on the radio on Sunday. The 75-year-old man is considered an important opinion-maker in the Czech Republic, but officially has only representative powers.
Czech Foreign Minister Tomas Petricek, for his part, spoke in favor of the first easing of the travel ban in early May. “I think the first countries to which we will open borders by mutual agreement could be Austria and Slovakia,” said the socialist. Poland and Germany could follow at a later date.
The Prague government coordinates its action with the other Visegrad countries (Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia). Therefore, at the borders with Poland and Slovakia there are no permanent controls on the Czech side. Exceptions to the travel ban apply to travelers, truck drivers, and in essential cases such as medical treatment.
Since Monday, craft companies, car dealers and weekly markets have been able to reopen in the Czech Republic, under the “strictest” hygienic conditions.
Keystone
Antibody test in the canton of St. Gallen
Serological tests with around 1,000 people have been running for about four weeks. Among other things, they are intended to provide information on how many people have been infected with the coronavirus, but do not show any symptoms of the disease. Pietro Vernazza, chief infectious medicine doctor at St. Gallen Cantonal Hospital, confirmed the study to Keystone-SDA in an interview with Linth-Zeitung in the canton of St. Gallen with health system employees.
Blood samples were collected from 1000 subjects every two weeks. Participants would also have to answer numerous questions. However, it was still too early to get results: “Right now we are testing the first 1000 samples,” said Vernazza. The results of the next series of tests will be available in a week. Different test systems would be compared to each other to obtain reliable statements. “We will only publish the results when we are sure they are reliable.”
The Federal Office of Public Health is coordinating this research work, and a representative Swiss study is being planned. “We have the advantage that we prepared the entire study more than a month ago and that the ethics committee approved it,” Vernazza said.
Slight increase: 204 new confirmed infections
In Switzerland and Liechtenstein, the number of new confirmed coronavirus infections increased by 204 in one day. According to the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG), today there are a total of 27,944 confirmed cases and 1,142 deaths. This increases the number of new confirmed cases slightly less than on the previous day, as reported by the BAG. Confirmed 336 new infections were reported on Sunday.
The Federal Public Health Office (FOPH) gives the death toll at 1142, seven more than on Sunday. The office refers to reports that laboratories and doctors had submitted as of Monday morning as part of the reporting obligation. The BAG continues, therefore the number may deviate from the canton numbers.
No new crown cases in Hong Kong
For the first time since early March, Hong Kong has not seen any new cases of coronavirus. Authorities in the China Special Administrative Region still urged residents to comply with strict hygiene standards and contact restrictions. Most recently, they reported no new infections on March 5.
In Hong Kong, 1,025 infections and four deaths have been reported since the outbreak began in January. An exponential increase could be avoided. Schools are closed, meetings of more than four people are prohibited, and many people work in the home office, but have not been closed entirely. Instead, many masks in Hong Kong wear masks, fever is measured in office buildings, business centers, and public facilities, and free disinfectant dispensers are available in many locations.
Many Hong Kong people wear masks, work in their offices, and fever is measured in public facilities.
Keystone
No ratings in the canton of Zurich
The Zurich Board of Education has decided to forego grades at the end of the school year. In place of the rating, the note “not rated” and a reference to the crown pandemic should be inserted on the certificate. This is because distance education is expected to continue until May 11, as announced by the Board of Education on Monday. This decision affects the second half of the second to the sixth grade of the elementary school, as well as the secondary school. Parent conversations in the sense of testimonial conversations in kindergarten and first grade of elementary school will also be dispensed with this year.
The Board of Education wants to support students entering vocational training after primary school. In addition to the certificate, youth can request a learning report and / or a letter of reference. In addition, youth who have not yet completed the interlocking test can make up for it as soon as face-to-face classes are held in schools again.
Financial aid for companies: Austria does not want to coordinate with Brussels
Austria is calling for a temporary suspension of the EU state aid law in the Corona crisis. This provides a framework for government aid to businesses. The country wants to act in the most flexible and non-bureaucratic way possible with its billions in aid to the economy, said Finance Minister Gernot Blümel (ÖVP) in Vienna. “We also want to be in solidarity with our own companies.”
Until now, each country has had to clarify many of its aid products with the EU Commission, Blümel said. However, in times of crisis of this magnitude, the usual bureaucracy is no longer appropriate.
Solidarity should not be a one-way street.
