Health and health insurance remain top concern for Swiss

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Every year, the bank UBS publishes its Worry Barometer, a poll that ranks the greatest concerns among Swiss voters. This week, it released the results for 2024. This year’s top concerns are healthcare, environmental and climate protection and retirement provision.

Polling for the survey conducted from mid-August to mid-September and included the views of 2,250 voters.

The survey revealed a rise in financial concerns. Financial uncertainty and higher cost of living are reflected in around one-third of the top 10 concerns. This includes the clear number one by a significant margin. in 2024, Swiss voters were most concerned about health issues, health insurance and premiums (48%). Concern for the environment followed in second place (32%), although this figure has been in decline compared with 2021 through to 2023. State pension and retirement provision concerns followed closely in third place (29%). The topics that have become significantly more important in comparison with the previous year include health, migration and housing costs, as well as the issue of security and crime which has climbed from 20th place last year to 10th (15%).

Healthcare the top concern

In 2024, almost half of voters (48%) rated the topics relating to healthcare as one of the five biggest problems in Switzerland in their opinion. Such high ratings were last seen in the mid-2000s. Healthcare costs were often in the media spotlight this year owing to the two popular initiatives relating to premium relief and a cost brake for healthcare costs as well as the vote on standardized financing of outpatient and inpatient services. In addition, health insurance premiums have again risen sharply since 2023, which may be why such high priority is assigned to this issue by voters.

Economic concerns changing

Among the concerns relating to the economy that directly affect the day-to-day lives of voters, the topic of accommodation costs has become increasingly relevant (25%). Since 2022, the proportion of people who are concerned about rising rents has increased. On the other hand, worries about unemployment are decreasing. While many voters were still worried about their jobs until the mid-2010s, and this topic has regularly been the main concern since the 1980s, concerns about unemployment have now become a marginal phenomenon (5%). This means that the topic that was once the number one worry no longer even features in the top 20 on the list of concerns. Another topic absent from the top concerns is the stability of the finance sector. Only 3% of Swiss voters consider this issue to be one of their main concerns, ranking it on 39th place out of 41.

Migration and immigration a rising concern

The challenges in the asylum system (28%) and immigration in general (26%) make up another topic that is perceived as a growing problem by the population. The year-on-year comparison underlines the growing importance of the topic of refugees (up five places from ninth to fourth). On the subject of the free movement of persons, the question about how relations between Switzerland and Europe will be structured is also indirectly linked to the migration topic. However, concerns about Europe (18%) must also be considered in the context of geopolitical changes. In addition to how relations with the EU are structured, this area also includes concerns about Switzerland’s loss of neutrality (13%) and the emergence of a new world order in which the West is under increasing pressure (10%).

More on this:
UBS report (in English) 

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