Three Approaches to Handling the COVID-19 Crisis in Federal Countries

Issue Despite their geographical and cultural proximity, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland can teach very different lessons on how to handle the COVID-19 pandemic. Timing and severity of outbreaks during the first wave were fairly similar in Germany and Austria, whereas Switzerland faced a higher infection rate at the peak of the crisis (although far from rates in France or Italy). Description The aim of this presentation is to examine the outbreak responses of the three countries in the spring of 2020 and give insight into the dynamics and rationales behind these responses. Results Although the three countries are all prime examples of federalism, Austria and Switzerland showed a decisive, uniform public health response resulting from epidemic laws granting the central level precedence under such circumstances. In Germany, by contrast, individual state governments played a central role. Response measures eventually taken by the three countries were not too different but how decisions were made and subsequently communicated to the public varied considerably. The three countries fared well in reducing transmission rates and never came close to reaching capacity limits in their health systems during the first wave. However, while all of them experienced a resurgence of infections in fall, the epidemiological development took a diverging course across the three countries in the following months. Lessons While all countries were successful in the first wave, differences in the paths chosen are likely to impact adherence to measures and may help explain divergent developments in the subsequent waves. Main messages Swift and decisive actions seem to have been successful answers to the first wave of the pandemic, but approaches to implementation and communication of these approaches to the public may make the difference in the further course of the pandemic.