Switzerland

Vaccination policies

In Switzerland there are no compulsory vaccinations for newborns.

In 2013, 60% of the Swiss voted for a law allowing the federal government to order compulsory vaccination in the event of an epidemic. 40% of citizens said "NO" to this law and, if necessary, the law will certainly be applied without any severity. Unfortunately, most day care centers require measles vaccination and other professional obligations are still strict.

School

In Switzerland, unvaccinated children can attend primary school. Most nurseries ask for vaccinations (measles and others) and, although it is an illegal request, the nursery can still decide independently and this varies from place to place: there are nurseries (KITA) where vaccinations of base are mandatory according to the BAG, in others they are not.

homeschooling

Parental education, Homeschooling, is possible in most cantons, for example, some cantons are very liberal and do not even require a teacher certificate from parents, but simply registration with the school authorities. Some cantons, however, allow homeschooling under state supervision only as an exception. Education is regulated by the cantons; therefore, inspectors visit about once a year to check whether children meet the standards set by the canton.

For more information visit the websiteHSLDA.

Recognition and compensation for vaccine injuries

Reports of adverse reactions from professionals and consumers are sent to the six regional centers. The centers process the reports and forward them to the Swissmedic national pharmacovigilance centre. When a pharmaceutical company reports an adverse reaction, it does so directly to Swissmedic.
In accordance with the new Therapeutic Products Act, which came into force on 1 January 2002, all serious, unknown or insufficiently documented adverse reactions must be reported.

Under the Therapeutic Products Act, all professionals authorized to distribute, administer or prescribe medicines are subject to the obligation to report suspected adverse reactions.

Consumers also have the right to report adverse drug events. A consultation with the GP leading to a joint report has the advantage of providing relevant medical details, but is not mandatory.

Compensation for vaccine injuries is regulated by the Epidemics Act: however, this only takes effect when health insurance companies and others do not pay and is limited to a maximum of 70000 francs and is quite ineffective.

Local organizations pro-freedom of choice in the therapeutic field