The Federal Office of Public Health has once again supplemented its hygiene recommendations for protection against the new corona virus. The instruction to keep your distance was added on Wednesday. This applies, for example, to queuing in line.
In order to protect older people who are particularly at risk from the Sars-CoV-2 virus, the distance should apply above all to them and to them, as representatives of the federal government and cantons announced to the media on Wednesday evening in Bern. Participants in meetings should also keep their distance physically.
The “Social Distancing” is new, said Minister of Health Alain Berset on Wednesday evening in Bern in front of the media. A certain distance from other people is important to protect the most vulnerable.
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After Berset introduced the “Social Distancing” measure, he shook hands with Heidi Hanselmann. Video: SDA-Keystone
The new pictogram complements the posters in red and yellow and the flyers for the “How we protect ourselves” campaign. The Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) launched it at the end of February because of the virus.
Risk assessment by the cantons
Representatives of the federal government and the cantons discussed the measures to protect against the new corona virus on Wednesday. The aim of the meeting was to provide the cantons with decision-making aids for dealing with events that are still permitted.
Already on Friday, the Federal Council banned the holding of events with 1000 or more participants in one room. Events with fewer audiences should be assessed on a case-by-case basis. So far, the cantons have done this in different ways.
The St. Gallen government councilor Heidi Hanselmann, president of the health directors’ conference of the cantons, explained the guidelines that representatives of the federal government and cantons had discussed in Bern on Wednesday. For events with less than 1,000 people, the cantons should make a risk assessment together with the organizers. Personal responsibility should also come into play.
Older people are particularly at risk of developing Covid-19. You and also people with diabetes or high blood pressure should be advised not to come to the event. “Anyone who feels sick should be asked not to attend the event,” said Hanselmann. The recommendations for protection against the virus are also to be published.
Guide number 150
The conference participants gave a guideline of 150 participants as a decision-making aid for whether a risk assessment is necessary at all or not. With this increase in visitors, their identity could still be recorded.
The group also thought about what to consider as an event. For example, spontaneous gatherings of people or a vegetable market are not events. “We don’t want to overreact, but we want to work out a common denominator,” said Hanselmann.
«No cause for alarm»
Berset praised the discussion with the representatives of the cantons. “There is no cause for alarm, but we take it seriously,” he said. The Confederation and the cantons wanted to fight the virus together, and for the first time since the ban on the event was imposed, representatives of the Confederation and the cantons met personally.
“It is about taking the right measures at the right time,” said Berset after the meeting with representatives of the cantons. “The most important thing is to have development under control” so that the most vulnerable groups can be protected as best as possible. (red)
Created: 04.03.2020, 09:36 PM
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