Coronavirus: vaccination status of prostitutes in French-speaking Switzerland

The sex trade has suffered particularly from the coronavirus. Today, brothels in French-speaking Switzerland want to offer more security through vaccination status.

The Corona pandemic also affected the sex trade unexpectedly and hit the sector all the harder. Countless brothels had to close for months. Today, safety is back - with the announcement of the Corona vaccination. In order not to leave clients in a state of uncertainty, prostitutes in the French-speaking part of Switzerland have the opportunity to declare their vaccination status. In future, anyone seeking a caress online will be able to see at a glance whether the lady has been vaccinated against Covid-19. A blue symbol with the inscription "Corona certificate" marks the spike, the idea for which comes from the escort directory "bemygirl.ch", as reported in "24 Heures". Out of a total of 36 women, 17 have already received the vaccine. Antoine Maillard, the site's manager, stresses however that this information is voluntary.

Clients stayed away because of the corona virus

The idea was born: customers were staying away because of the virus. "We noticed a drop in the number of visits because of Covid-19. Some clients were reluctant, and this information now brings clarity," says Maillard.Maillard is not alone with this idea: at the Venusia brothel in Geneva, sex workers can also declare their vaccination status. "We don't force them to do it, but we ask them to," says the owner. About half of the women have now received the full Corona vaccine. The goal is to have them all vaccinated by January. According to the owner, the women are doing this primarily for the clients. Most of them are young and see no immediate danger in Corona. It has never happened before that a client asked for a vaccinated prostitute.