Will unvaccinated people have to pay their own hospital costs in Switzerland?

While Switzerland’s vaccination rollout is still continuing, health experts are concerned about vaccination scepticism. 

Reader question: Will Switzerland make the coronavirus vaccine compulsory?

An estimated 75 to 90 percent of the Swiss population has indicated they want to be vaccinated, leaving behind a large number of sceptics and people hesitant to take the jab. 

Although Swiss authorities have repeatedly said the vaccination will not become compulsory, they have adopted several methods of tackling vaccination hesitancy and scepticism. 

READ MORE: How Switzerland plans to tackle its vaccine scepticism problem

FDP National Councilor Kurt Fluri said on July 22nd that health insurers should not be forced to cover the costs of people who get sick after choosing not to be vaccinated. 

"Otherwise we will have to wait forever to get our freedoms back" he said. 

One prominent Swiss epidemiologist told news outlet 20 Minutes that the country could reach vaccine sceptics through their wallet. 

"If unvaccinated people end up in hospital because of Covid, the health insurance companies should be able to recourse against these people later,” he said, 

The expert, who withdrew his name due to fear of death threats from anti-vaccine advocates, said health insurers should not be forced to pay the costs of people who “negligently spread the disease”. 

Rui Biagini from the Protect the Kids initiative, said vaccinations should be made compulsory for all people entering education institutions. 

“The USA has shown the way with vaccination stations on campus, where students and teachers were vaccinated at an early stage. Those who are not vaccinated should no longer have access to the campus,” he said. 

“Without a vaccination we run the risk of having to send the students back into distance learning,” he said. 

Others have criticised the idea, including Swiss politicians who doubt that such a measure would be legal. 

FDP National Councilor Philippe Nantermod said it would create a slippery slope which would then require drinkers, smokers and overweight people to pay for their own healthcare, rather than have it covered by insurance. 

“Punishing you for being hospitalised would be a compulsory vaccination and deprivation of liberty," he said. 

Dobler’s FDP colleague Philippe Nantermod said punishment should be avoided, with a better approach being to encourage people through providing incentives. 

"There is no legal basis for this, the population would not understand it,” he said. 

“The 30 to 40 percent who don't get vaccinated will be to blame if there is another wave. You could do something about it, but don't do this."

Nantermod suggested making more privileges available only to those who have been vaccinated, such as dining out in restaurants. 

“People who don't get vaccinated are obviously not afraid of the disease. But maybe the possible exclusion from social life scares them or at least encourages them to do something.”

Simon Wieser, a health economist from Zurich University of Applied Sciences, said such a measure would be out of step with current rules relating to other self-inflicted forms of harm. 

“The implementation would be very complex and make little sense. For example, it would be necessary to determine the reasons why someone refrains from vaccination,” he said.  

“These reasons can be diverse and relevant: For example, some people have psychological illnesses that keep them from having a vaccination.”

Christoph Berger, Head of Infectious Diseases at the University Children's Hospital Zurich and President of the Federal Commission for Vaccination Issues, said honest communication was the best incentive. 

“The strongest argument is: We saw that the vaccination works. The side effects are manageable, nothing worse has happened.”

“The Delta variant is contagious. There will be more cases than we have thought up to now. With vaccination we can prevent serious illnesses.”