Revision of the Epidemics Act: NRP 80 establishes a pool of experts

Switzerland is incorporating the lessons learnt from the Covid-19 pandemic into the revision of the Epidemics Act (EpidA). Parliament is currently debating the Federal Council's draft bill on this matter. In order to support decision-makers and media professionals, the NRP 80 has compiled a pool of experts on key thematic areas that continue to be the subject of intense debate in connection with the revision of the Act.

The pool enables Members of Parliament to engage in a direct exchange with academic experts on the following four thematic areas:

• Inequalities, equality of opportunity and vulnerabilities;

• cooperation between and respective responsibilities of the Federal Council, Parliament and the cantons;

• information systems;

• financial support.

For each thematic area, experts are available for consultations and in-depth discussions. Each team of experts consists of a research group leader, an early-career researcher, and a member of the NRP 80 Steering Committee.

Since 2023, researchers in 25 projects of the NRP 80 have been investigating the societal and social processes during the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as the direct and indirect effects of government measures on the population. Their knowledge and research findings provide a vital foundation for the further development of pandemic preparedness and response in Switzerland. The projects will be completed this year and the synthesis report of the NRP 80 is due to be published in February 2027.