Covid-19: more grounds for optimism, experts say

Swiss government experts at the press conference on Friday, in the background a situation report Keystone / Anthony Anex

The coronavirus pandemic is subsiding, Swiss government experts say. Pregnant women in the second trimester may now get vaccinated against the virus.

All the important coronavirus indicators are going in the right direction, said Patrick Mathys, head of crisis management at the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH), at a press conference on Friday afternoon.

In particular, the number of deaths has fallen. “This is due to vaccination campaign progress,” he said.

As in most of Switzerland’s neighbouring countries, the number of cases, hospitalisations and people in intensive care have also dropped, he added.

The news comes as the country prepares for further easing of coronavirus restrictions from Monday.

Below 1,000 mark

On Friday official figuresExternal link showed 912 confirmed cases, the third day in a row cases have dipped under 1,000. There were 36 hospitalisations and three deaths.

The downwards trend has been confirmed by a parallel study looking at the virus in wastewater, added Mathys.

Government posters have moved from a red background to orange to reflect the change in circumstances, although Mathys still urged the population to behave with caution to not undo the good work so far. “Orange is not the new green,” he remarked, as is also noted on the Tweet below.

«Die Farbe der Kampagne wechselt von rot auf orange. Orange ist aber noch nicht das neue Grün, d.h. wir müssen wachsam bleiben, damit die Situation auch so bleibt, wie sie im Moment ist.» Patrick Mathys pic.twitter.com/Yy3eCkxLe5External link

— BAG – OFSP – UFSP (@BAG_OFSP_UFSP) May 28, 2021External link

Pregnant women

In addition, the Federal Vaccination Commission has changed its recommendation for pregnant women – those from the second trimester onwards may now get vaccinated against the coronavirus. However, those wanting to get the jab require a medical consultation first and have to sign a declaration of consent, Mathys explained.

Before that, the commission had only recommended vaccinations for pregnant women in risk groups.

Overall, vaccinations are picking up speed. More than 557,000 doses were given in the period May 20-26, or around 80,000 a day, Friday’s figures showed.