Health office launches new Covid vaccination campaign

Just under 50% of the Swiss population have been fully (two jabs) vaccinated against Covid-19. © Keystone / Gaetan Bally

The Federal Office of Public Health has launched a new Covid vaccination campaign to boost the flagging inoculation rate in Switzerland. Just under 50% of the population have been double-jabbed.

Owing to the slowdown in people willing to get a jab and the rising number of new Covid infections caused by the contagious Delta variant, the health authorities have launched a national information campaign with the message “Don’t miss out – get vaccinated”.

“Vaccination against Covid-19 remains the main measure to reduce the consequences of the pandemic. Every vaccination counts,” the health ministry said in a statementExternal link on Monday.

“The campaign is a reminder to all adults and adolescents who have not yet been vaccinated and those who are hesitant that now is the right time to do so, especially given the increasing number of cases and variants.”

The national information campaign will include posters, and adverts on social media, on the internet and on television.

High vaccination ratesExternal link have been registered in countries like Spain (64% of total population double-jabbed), Israel (63%), UK (60%), Italy (57%), Germany (57%) and France (53%).

In Switzerland, the vaccination rollout continues across the country but has slowed. In total, 9.3 million doses were administered between late December and August 16. The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine and the Moderna vaccine have both been cleared for use on teenagers.

Meanwhile, new Covid cases have rebounded in Switzerland to more than 2,000 a day. The growth is largely due to the highly infectious Delta variant affecting unvaccinated people, mainly in the 10-29-year-old age group. Hospitalisations however remain at a relatively low level.