“Flying high in a plane” Appellate Body Report, European Communities and certain member states – measures affecting trade in large civil aircraft

This article reviews the Appellate Body decision in the implementation phase of the EC – Aircraft dispute. Focusing on some of the key findings, we assess whether they are legally and economically correct. We conclude that a) though still unclear, the test for establishing de facto contingency on import substitution subsidies is probably too demanding; that b) though legitimate, the interpretation of the remedy of removal of the adverse effects for actionable subsidies is the weakest and most deferential possible; that c) the hesitation in confirming that quantitative methods are the key tool to define the relevant market is unwelcome; and that d) the Appellate Body correctly recognise the importance for Panels to consider, in the context of the serious prejudice analysis, whether the like product of the complainant has been subsidised. Most importantly, the analysis of this case, set within the broader jurisprudence and practice, has led us to conclude that WTO subsidy disciplines are not particularly strong. The review of the main economic theories justifying subsidy control (strategic trade policy, terms of trade, private information, commitment theory) has shown that no single theory is able to fully account for subsidies and the need to control them. The key question is the definition of what we want to achieve by controlling subsidies, which is the main message sent to the policy-makers and negotiators that are currently considering law reform

Regional public health care spending in Switzerland: an empirical analysis

In this study we attempt to explain variations across the Swiss regional states (cantons) in public health care expenditures. The large autonomy of the cantons in the organization and financing of health care services creates strong heterogeneity. Per capita public expenditures in health care are assumed to depend on the median tax share, intergovernmental grants, and some structural factors. The empirical analysis shows that cantonal behavior is sensitive to federal subsidies. Moreover, changes in median income seem to have significantly larger effects on budgetary behavior than do equal changes in grants from the federal state, leading to a result which is contrary to part of the empirical literature on the flypaper-effect

Three essays on the role of federalism in the Swiss healthcare system

Switzerland is a country with a strongly decentralized political system, based on federalism and institutions of direct democracy, on a liberal economic culture, and on a well-developed tradition of mutualism and social security (generous social expenditure and welfare system). Switzerland is unique for its high level of decentralization and for the particular distribution of competences and roles between the central State (the Confederation) and the cantonal authorities. This particular setting allows cantons to have significant leeway in the organization of health care and the implementation of specific public policies. This thesis aims to give a contribution to the health economics literature, assessing some of the internal implications of the Swiss federal setting in the health care sector (chapters 1 and 2) and drawing some more general public policy results, exploiting the Swiss context (chapter 3). The first two chapters explore two different sides of the equity of the Swiss health care system. In the first chapter, I assess to what extent the political autonomy allocated to cantons leads to differences in the level of regressivity in the financing of the health care system and over time. The second chapter investigates the role of managed care contracts and higher deductible on the equity in health care utilization. Finally, in the third chapter I carry out a policy evaluation analysis to assess the causal effects of smoking bans on acute myocardial infarction. Different from the other two chapters, this work draws conclusions that abstract from the Swiss context. Switzerland is the perfect setting where to employ our empirical strategy, due to the different times of implementation of the policy if interest. However, the results have external validity. Each work is based on a different database: the first and the third are based on administrative data, while the second one relies on survey data

'Flying high in a plane' appellate body report, European Communities and certain member states : measures affecting trade in large civil aircraft (WT/DS316/AB/RW)

This article reviews the Appellate Body decision in the implementation phase of the EC – Aircraft dispute. Focusing on some of the key findings, we assess whether they are legally and economically correct. We conclude that a) though still unclear, the test for establishing de facto contingency on import substitution subsidies is probably too demanding; that b) though legitimate, the interpretation of the remedy of removal of the adverse effects for actionable subsidies is the weakest and most deferential possible; that c) the hesitation in confirming that quantitative methods are the key tool to define the relevant market is unwelcome; and that d) the Appellate Body correctly recognise the importance for Panels to consider, in the context of the serious prejudice analysis, whether the like product of the complainant has been subsidised. Most importantly, the analysis of this case, set within the broader jurisprudence and practice, has led us to conclude that WTO subsidy disciplines are not particularly strong. The review of the main economic theories justifying subsidy control (strategic trade policy, terms of trade, private information, commitment theory) has shown that no single theory is able to fully account for subsidies and the need to control them. The key question is the definition of what we want to achieve by controlling subsidies, which is the main message sent to the policy-makers and negotiators that are currently considering law reform

Le rôle de l'assurance maladie dans la régulation du système de santé en Suisse

Le système suisse d'assurance maladie se situe à mi-chemin entre une assurance sociale et une assurance privée. L'assurance est obligatoire et gérée par une pluralité de caisses maladies privées sans but lucratif, qui sont formellement en concurrence et offrent un panier identique de prestations. La prime de l'assurance est indépendante du revenu et varie en fonction du canton de résidence de l'assuré et du risque moyen de la clientèle de l'assureur (community rating). Le modèle offre au citoyen-assuré une totale liberté de choix du fournisseur de prestations et de l'assureur à l'intérieur du canton de résidence. Les assureurs peuvent offrir des produits qui limitent la liberté de choix du fournisseur de soins moyennant un rabais sur le prix de l'assurance. Un bilan sur le rôle régulateur de ce modèle complexe d'assurance, qui représente un compromis entre mécanismes de marché et régulation étatique et soumis à un système de financement dégressif par rapport au revenu, montre que l'objectif de l'équité d'accès aux soins a été largement atteint contrairement à l'objectif de maîtrise de la croissance des coûts. Des réformes majeures du système sont en discussion au Parlement, mais leur succès risque d'être remis en question par les clivages entre les objectifs des principales parties prenantes (stakeholders) et par le fédéralisme et la démocratie directe qui caractérisent le paysage constitutionnel de la Suisse. [Auteurs]]]> Insurance, Health fre oai:serval.unil.ch:BIB_2E33947B4D6B 2022-10-01T01:16:03Z <oai_dc:dc xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:xs="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:oai_dc="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc.xsd"> https://serval.unil.ch/notice/serval:BIB_2E33947B4D6B Production et cessation : la psychologie bouddhiste au quotidien Feller, D. Manné, J. info:eu-repo/semantics/book book 2007 fre oai:serval.unil.ch:BIB_2E339D4530BF 2022-10-01T01:16:03Z <oai_dc:dc xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:xs="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:oai_dc="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/" xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc/ http://www.openarchives.org/OAI/2.0/oai_dc.xsd"> https://serval.unil.ch/notice/serval:BIB_2E339D4530BF SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in hospital healthcare workers in Western Switzerland at the end of the second pandemic wave. info:doi:10.1099/jmm.0.001558 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1099/jmm.0.001558 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pmid/35921229 Jacot, D. von Rotz, U. Blondet, F. Aebischer, O. Matthieu, P. De Rham, M. Pantaleo, G. Marchetti, O. Greub, G. info:eu-repo/semantics/article article Journal of medical microbiology, vol. 71, no. 8 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/eissn/1473-5644 urn:issn:0022-2615 <![CDATA[Introduction. In early January 2020, the pandemic of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) rapidly spread from China and caused a worldwide pandemic.Hypothesis. Healthcare workers represent a high-risk group for acquiring COVID-19 and for nosocomial transmission of severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).Aim. We aimed to investigate over a 1 year period, across two pandemic waves, the SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence in employees at a Western Switzerland public hospital.Methodology. A prospective observational SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence study was proposed to all hospital employees who enrolled on a voluntary basis.Results. Out of 594 participants recruited on a voluntary basis, 269 volunteers (45.3 %) had anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies: this seroprevalence was twice higher than that reported in the local community. Healthcare workers with prolonged exposure to patients with COVID-19 showed a significantly higher odds ratio (OR) of having a positive SARS-CoV-2 serology [OR 3.19, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 2.16-4.74]. Symptoms showing the highest association with a positive serology were anosmia (OR 11.9, 95 % CI 5.58-30.9) and ageusia (OR 10.3, 95 % CI 4.8-26.3). A total of 17.1 % (95 % CI 12.2-21.1 %) of SARS-CoV-2 seropositive volunteers did not report a suspicion of COVID-19 in their personal history.Conclusion. Overall, we observed that the impact of the second SARS-CoV-2 pandemic wave was considerable and significantly affected healthcare workers with prolonged exposure to patients with COVID-19

Miravirsen (SPC3649) can inhibit the biogenesis of miR-122

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are short noncoding RNAs, which bind to messenger RNAs and regulate protein expression. The biosynthesis of miRNAs includes two precursors, a primary miRNA transcript (pri-miRNA) and a shorter pre-miRNA, both of which carry a common stem-loop bearing the mature miRNA. MiR-122 is a liver-specific miRNA with an important role in the life cycle of hepatitis C virus (HCV). It is the target of miravirsen (SPC3649), an antimiR drug candidate currently in clinical testing for treatment of HCV infections. Miravirsen is composed of locked nucleic acid (LNAs) ribonucleotides interspaced throughout a DNA phosphorothioate sequence complementary to mature miR-122. The LNA modifications endow the drug with high affinity for its target and provide resistance to nuclease degradation. While miravirsen is thought to work mainly by hybridizing to mature miR-122 and blocking its interaction with HCV RNA, its target sequence is also present in pri- and pre-miR-122. Using new in vitro and cellular assays specifically developed to discover ligands that suppress biogenesis of miR-122, we show that miravirsen binds to the stem-loop structure of pri- and pre-miR-122 with nanomolar affinity, and inhibits both Dicer- and Drosha-mediated processing of miR-122 precursors. This inhibition may contribute to the pharmacological activity of the drug in ma

Work Integration Social Enterprises in Switzerland

The article aims to present the Swiss landscape of work integration social enterprises (WISEs). The origins of SEs are rooted within three distinct social security regimes, i. e. disability insurance, unemployment insurance and social assistance. The debate around SE has a longer tradition in the French-speaking part of the country, while it seems more recent in the German-speaking area. The literature review presented in this article allowed for identifying at least five definitions of the WISE model emerging from Swiss civil society. The heterogeneity of their normative elements reflects different conceptions about the positioning of SE in the market, its resources mix, the integration goals and the wage models for the disadvantaged workers. This article draws on a recent empirical survey from which some key-figures concerning the size of the WISE sector have been estimated. Descriptive statistics on legal forms, profit allocation, target-groups, integration goals, remuneration models, economic sectors and the competitive nature of WISEs are provided. By means of a cluster analysis, four models of SE have been identified. The article concludes with a discussion of some of the major issues around the future development of the sector

Anti-chemokine antibodies after SARS-CoV-2 infection correlate with favorable disease course.

Infection by SARS-CoV-2 leads to diverse symptoms, which can persist for months. While antiviral antibodies are protective, those targeting interferons and other immune factors are associated with adverse COVID-19 outcomes. Instead, we discovered that antibodies against specific chemokines are omnipresent after COVID-19, associated with favorable disease, and predictive of lack of long COVID symptoms at one year post infection. Anti-chemokine antibodies are present also in HIV-1 and autoimmune disorders, but they target different chemokines than those in COVID-19. Finally, monoclonal antibodies derived from COVID- 19 convalescents that bind to the chemokine N-loop impair cell migration. Given the role of chemokines in orchestrating immune cell trafficking, naturally arising anti-chemokine antibodies associated with favorable COVID-19 may be beneficial by modulating the inflammatory response and thus bear therapeutic potential. One-Sentence Summary Naturally arising anti-chemokine antibodies associate with favorable COVID-19 and are predictive of lack of long COVID

Human neutralizing antibodies to cold linear epitopes and subdomain 1 of the SARS-CoV-2 spike glycoprotein

Emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants diminishes the efficacy of vaccines and antiviral monoclonal antibodies. Continued development of immunotherapies and vaccine immunogens resilient to viral evolution is therefore necessary. Using coldspot-guided antibody discovery, a screening approach that focuses on portions of the virus spike glycoprotein that are both functionally relevant and averse to change, we identified human neutralizing antibodies to highly conserved viral epitopes. Antibody fp.006 binds the fusion peptide and cross-reacts against coronaviruses of the four genera, including the nine human coronaviruses, through recognition of a conserved motif that includes the S2´ site of proteolytic cleavage. Antibody hr2.016 targets the stem helix and neutralizes SARS-CoV-2 variants. Antibody sd1.040 binds to subdomain 1, synergizes with antibody rbd.042 for neutralization and, like fp.006 and hr2.016, protects mice expressing human ACE2 against infection when present as bispecific antibody. Thus, coldspot-guided antibody discovery reveals donor-derived neutralizing antibodies that are cross-reactive with Orthocoronavirinae, including SARS-CoV-2 variants