Tag Archives: health

Last week, the government announced that it had shaved CHF 100 million off the cost of drug purchases from 1 January 2020. © Vitaly Iskakov | Dreamstime.com This week numbers obtained by RTS from Curafutura, a health insurance association, show drug spending rose CHF 420 million from CHF 6.9 billion to CHF 7 billion between October 2018 and September 2019 and the same period 12 month a year before. Over the last five years spending on drugs has risen 26%. Savings are not keeping up...

© Tero Vesalainen Dreamstime.com Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) recently announced it had reduced the price Swiss healthcare providers and patients will pay for 257 drugs by 16.3%. These lower prices, which take affect on 1 December 2019, are expected to save CHF 100 million annually. The FOPH looked at the prices of 478 drugs and achieved price reductions on 257 (54%) of them. The government has promised to cut healthcare costs via a range of...

Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) recently announced it had reduced the price Swiss healthcare providers and patients will pay for 257 drugs by 16.3%. © Tero Vesalainen Dreamstime.comThese lower prices, which take affect on 1 December 2019, are expected to save CHF 100 million annually. The FOPH looked at the prices of 478 drugs and achieved price reductions on 257 (54%) of them. The government has promised to cut healthcare costs via a range of measures...

An initiative demanding a ban on tobacco advertising has collected 109,969 valid signatures, more than the 100,000 minimum required to launch a popular vote, according to RTS. The planned vote entitled: “Yes to the protection of children and young people against tobacco advertising” demands the federal government ban all forms of tobacco advertising towards children and young people. In practice such a ban would include banning all tobacco advertising in public...

An initiative demanding a ban on tobacco advertising has collected 109,969 valid signatures, more than the 100,000 minimum required to launch a popular vote, according to RTS. The planned vote entitled: “Yes to the protection of children and young people against tobacco advertising” demands the federal government ban all forms of tobacco advertising towards children and young people. In practice such a ban would include banning all tobacco advertising in public places, in cinemas, at...

© Ginasanders | Dreamstime.com Every year, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) gives projections of compulsory health insurance premiums for the coming year. After years of rising premiums, many will be relieved by the small projected increases for 2020. Across all of Switzerland, the average premium is expected to rise 0.2% to CHF 315.40 a month. On average, adults will pay CHF 374.40 (+0.3%), young adults (19-25) CHF 265.30 (-2.0%) and children CHF...

Every year, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) gives advance warning of compulsory health insurance premiums for the coming year. © Ginasanders | Dreamstime.comAfter years of rising premiums, many will be relieved by the small projected increases for 2020. Across all of Switzerland, the average premium is expected to rise 0.2% to CHF 315.40 a month. On average, adults will pay CHF 374.40 (+0.3%), young adults (19-25) CHF 265.30 (-2.0%) and children CHF 98.70 (+0.0%)....

© Mcwilli1 | Dreamstime.com Health care in Switzerland is funded by a mixture of taxes and health insurance premiums. Much of the insurance premiums paid are compulsory with no discounts offered to non-smokers. According to figures recently published by the Swiss association for smoking, the annual direct medical costs of smoking are CHF 3 billion (2015), or CHF 350 per person. This sum represents 3.9% of Switzerland’s total annual health spending. Tobacco use is the...

Health care in Switzerland is funded by a mixture of taxes and health insurance premiums. Much of the insurance premiums paid are compulsory with no discounts offered to non-smokers. © Mcwilli1 | Dreamstime.comAccording to figures recently published by the Swiss association for smoking, the annual direct medical costs of smoking are CHF 3 billion (2015), or CHF 350 per person. This sum represents 3.9% of Switzerland’s total annual health spending. Tobacco use is the main risk factor...

Researchers at the Paul Scherrer Institute recently deciphered the structure of the CC chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7), a signaling protein. © Bogdan Hoda | Dreamstime.comCancer cells use CCR7 to guide themselves into the lymphatic system, spreading cancer throughout the body. The resulting secondary tumors, called metastases, are responsible for most cancer deaths. This new understanding of CCR7 is a break through that forms a foundation for developing drugs that could lead to treatments...