Quarantine obligation: industry calls for shortening to 5 days
The SARS Cov2 mutation Omikron is causing case numbers to rise worldwide. More and more workers are being forced into quarantine or isolation. In the USA, the quarantine period has already been reduced to 5 days. The business umbrella organization Economiesuisse is calling for Switzerland to catch up here.
According to Economiesuisse, around 70,000 people in Switzerland are currently in isolation, and over 31,000 are in quarantine. The number of cases is increasing, as reported in the daily bulletins of the FOPH. The 7-day average of case numbers is 21,189 cases, according to the latest data as of January 7, 2022. The number of people in isolation or quarantine is expected to increase even further. The discussion about the duration of the quarantine obligation is getting louder.
Mandatory quarantine and isolation cause productivity reductions
Staff shortages are already a problem for certain companies, and they have to curtail production or reduce their offerings. In the public transport sector, for example, the Zurich public transport company has currently suspended streetcar line 15. The business umbrella organization Economiesuisse expects these bottlenecks to worsen in the coming days. Therefore, the cost-benefit ratio of the current rules regarding isolation and quarantine should be questioned, it demands. Currently, the federal government stipulates that isolation must last ten days. Nevertheless, many cantons have reduced the duration of contact quarantine to seven days.
New insights into the contagion phase
In Economiesuisse's opinion, the USA is a step ahead of Switzerland in this respect. On December 27, 2021, the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) health authority shortened the duration of isolation and quarantine. Infected people in isolation after a positive test and people in contact quarantine will be able to move freely after five days if they are symptom-free. The CDC based its decision on current scientific findings, according to the statement. This means that the majority of infections occur in the early stages of the disease, i.e. one to two days before the onset of symptoms and two to three days after. Therefore, the CDC believes that a five-day period is sufficient to sufficiently reduce the risk of infection posed by an infected person.
Prevent unnecessary restrictions and downtime
In contrast to the CDC, the federal scientific task force is still critical of the shortening of the quarantine requirement. Nevertheless, some experts question the current procedure and even consider a complete abolition of the quarantine obligation to be appropriate. Economiesuisse is calling for at least a nationwide reduction in quarantine and isolation to five days for people who are symptom-free at this point. This could reduce the risk of production stoppages and should lead to fewer restrictions on the supply of infrastructure. It would also allow the population to resume their daily lives sooner. This should help motivate people to support the measures and actually get tested if they have symptoms, writes Economiesuisse.
Source: Economiesuisse
