Switzerland to Reveal 3-Phase Reopening From Virus Shutdown

Switzerland's government is due to unveil on Thursday how it plans to relax the country's shutdown put in place to halt the spread of the new coronavirus epidemic, Swiss media reported.

Health Minister Alain Berset will outline a three-stage plan to start a gradual opening of businesses and schools that have been shuttered for a month.

Under Berset's plan, companies that provide personal services like hairdressers and physiotherapists will be allowed to return to work on April 27, Tages-Anzeiger and Neue Zuercher Zeitung reported.

The number of customers allowed on their premises will be restricted, the papers said.

Following a gap of two or three weeks for monitoring, schools could reopen on May 11. Bars and restaurants would remain closed until at least June 8 before reopening in the third phase.

No plans have been drawn up for when mass events like concerts or soccer matches can restart. Switzerland has banned gatherings of more than five people under its emergency measures.

The plans are not yet settled, the Tages-Anzeiger reported, with the government seeking to prevent the country's regional authorities from acting alone.

Switzerland's business community, facing huge losses from the shutdown, has been lobbying to lift the restrictions as soon as possible.

The COVID-19 outbreak has so far claimed 973 lives in Switzerland, although the rate of positive tests has slowed in recent days.

Neighboring Austria has already announced a partial exit from its own lockdown, while Germany has announced its plan to reopen.