Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Thursday
The cheapest and most expensive cities for taxpayers; essential drugs remain unavailable in Switzerland, and other news in our roundup on Thursday.
Where in Switzerland taxes and highest and lowest
On Wednesday, The Local published an article about where the cheapest properties in Switzerland are located.
You can learn about these areas here:
REVEALED: The most affordable places to buy a home in Switzerland
Now comes a report about where in the country the taxes are lowest and highest.
Suprisingly, communities where a number of multinational companies are located, and where many foreigners live, often have a lower tax rate than areas that are not in the vicinity of major cities.
For a single person earning 100,000 francs a year, the municipal, cantonal, and federal tax burden is lowest (less that 6.5 percent of annual income) in the Zug communities of Baar, Walchwil, Risch, Unter/Oberäger, Steinhausen, Hütenburg, and Menzigen.
Zug is a canton with many international companies, located less than an hour from Zurich.
Neuchàtel communities, on the other hand, have the highest tax rates — exceeding 19 percent of income — with the lowest (19.62 percent) in Brot-Plamboz and la Brévine, and the highest (19.97 percent) in Enges and Les Verrières.
READ MORE: Where taxes in Switzerland are highest and lowest
Shortage of drugs is “getting worse,” pharmacists warn
While not new, the shortage of hundreds of essential medications — including the ones for hypertension, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, heart problems, as well as flu and similar viruses — is getting worse in Switzerland.
"We are short of 829 prescription drugs,” according to Enea Martinelli, vice-president of the Swiss Society of Pharmacists (Pharmasuisse).
As a result of this scarcity, “one out of two patients lack the medicine they need, and their treatments have to be switched to available drugs,” he added.
Among the reasons Martinelli cited for the shortage is closure of pharmaceutical factories in China during Covid, as well as not enough packaging for the drugs, meaning that meds “could not be packed and shipped.”
READ MORE: Switzerland faces drugs shortage
This is what commuters leave on Swiss trains
In 2022, more than 100,000 objects were left on Switzerland’s trains by forgetful passengers.
While some of these “lost and found” items are what you’d expect — for instance keys, mobile phones, bags, and toys, others are much more bizarre.
The mind wonders how a commuter could leave behind a prosthetic leg, a glass eye, an electric wheelchair, a ship's rudder wheel, a Japanese saber, and a prisoner’s jacket.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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Where in Switzerland taxes and highest and lowest
On Wednesday, The Local published an article about where the cheapest properties in Switzerland are located.
You can learn about these areas here:
REVEALED: The most affordable places to buy a home in Switzerland
Now comes a report about where in the country the taxes are lowest and highest.
Suprisingly, communities where a number of multinational companies are located, and where many foreigners live, often have a lower tax rate than areas that are not in the vicinity of major cities.
For a single person earning 100,000 francs a year, the municipal, cantonal, and federal tax burden is lowest (less that 6.5 percent of annual income) in the Zug communities of Baar, Walchwil, Risch, Unter/Oberäger, Steinhausen, Hütenburg, and Menzigen.
Zug is a canton with many international companies, located less than an hour from Zurich.
Neuchàtel communities, on the other hand, have the highest tax rates — exceeding 19 percent of income — with the lowest (19.62 percent) in Brot-Plamboz and la Brévine, and the highest (19.97 percent) in Enges and Les Verrières.
READ MORE: Where taxes in Switzerland are highest and lowest
Shortage of drugs is “getting worse,” pharmacists warn
While not new, the shortage of hundreds of essential medications — including the ones for hypertension, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, heart problems, as well as flu and similar viruses — is getting worse in Switzerland.
"We are short of 829 prescription drugs,” according to Enea Martinelli, vice-president of the Swiss Society of Pharmacists (Pharmasuisse).
As a result of this scarcity, “one out of two patients lack the medicine they need, and their treatments have to be switched to available drugs,” he added.
Among the reasons Martinelli cited for the shortage is closure of pharmaceutical factories in China during Covid, as well as not enough packaging for the drugs, meaning that meds “could not be packed and shipped.”
READ MORE: Switzerland faces drugs shortage
This is what commuters leave on Swiss trains
In 2022, more than 100,000 objects were left on Switzerland’s trains by forgetful passengers.
While some of these “lost and found” items are what you’d expect — for instance keys, mobile phones, bags, and toys, others are much more bizarre.
The mind wonders how a commuter could leave behind a prosthetic leg, a glass eye, an electric wheelchair, a ship's rudder wheel, a Japanese saber, and a prisoner’s jacket.
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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