Vaccination is currently a major issue in several European countries. In France, for example, everyone who works with patients in a hospital or retirement home has to be vaccinated. And in Greece, too, the same applies to healthcare workers. In Switzerland, the National Ethics Committee (NEK) advised against compulsory vaccination as early as February. Commission President Andrea Büchler explains why she is sticking to her position.
Andrea Buechler
President of the National Ethics Committee
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Andrea Büchler is Professor of Private Law and Comparative Law at the University of Zurich. She is President of the National Ethics Committee.
SRF News: Do the February ethics committee's considerations on compulsory vaccination still apply without restriction?
Andrea Büchler: So far, the National Ethics Committee has had no reason to revise its statement. A general obligation to vaccinate is out of the question anyway for legal and ethical reasons. We have made very differentiated statements about compulsory vaccination for special groups of people - and our considerations still apply today.
What are the ethical arguments against compulsory vaccination?
The fact is that the nursing staff is in contact with patients. Therefore one could possibly speak of a professional ethical duty to be vaccinated - so that one does not endanger others. On the other hand, it is about the basic right of personal freedom.
Vaccination has to do with physical integrity: Any intervention here requires the voluntary consent of the person concerned. This is not the case with compulsory vaccination. That's the problem.
So is personal freedom absolute?
Interventions in personal freedom may only take place if they are proportionate. The decisive question is whether there is no alternative to restricting personal freedom. In the case of the Covid vaccination question, however, there are these: You can use health workers who are unwilling to be vaccinated differently – without direct contact with patients. Or you can ask them to do regular Covid tests. These alternatives ensure patient protection in the same way as vaccination.
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The considerations of the NEK on the Covid vaccination The considerations of the NEK on the Covid vaccination
In April, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that compulsory vaccination may also be justified in a democracy. Are you more reticent about the question?
From a purely legal point of view, the Epidemics Act in Switzerland would make it possible to impose compulsory vaccination for certain groups of people “in the event of considerable risk” and as an “ultima ratio”. But even if this legal basis exists, it would have to be checked whether the obligation would be proportionate.
There can be situations – and we are in agreement with the European Court of Human Rights – that would justify compulsory vaccination. At the moment, however, we believe that it would not be the right thing to do - and that compulsory vaccination for health workers would not send the right signal and could even be counterproductive.
What consequences do you fear?
The profession could become less attractive, or compulsory vaccination could be interpreted by health workers as a sign of distrust. At a time when it has accomplished so much, that would be completely out of place. On the contrary, there needs to be more appreciation for the work of nursing staff.
Katharina Bochsler conducted the interview.
