COVID-19 pandemic in Switzerland

The COVID-19 pandemic was confirmed to have spread to Switzerland on 25 February 2020 when the first case of COVID-19 was confirmed following a COVID-19 outbreak in Italy. 

Cases
The first case was a 70-year-old man in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino which borders Italy, tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. The man had previously visited Milan. Afterwards, multiple cases related to the Italy areas were discovered in multiple cantons, including Basel-City, Zürich, and Graubünden. 

Multiple isolated cases not related to the Italy clusters were also confirmed.

Response
On 28 February, the national government, the Federal Council, banned all events with more than 1,000 participants. On 16 March, schools and most shops were closed nationwide, and on 20 March, all gatherings of more than five people in public spaces were banned. The government also put restrictions on border crossings. They also announced economic support measures worth 40 billion Swiss francs.

References

Category:2020s in Switzerland
Switzerland