Airbnb city tax also in Basel-Stadt
Airbnb will start to levy a city tax automatically from all providers who offer holiday accommodation over the online platform in Basel-Stadt, starting from 1st September 2018. Airbnb will transfer the tax to the office of Economy and Work of Basel-Stadt.
Basel-Stadt is the fourth canton after Zug, Baselland, and Zurich to have agreed on the levy of city tax, airbnb wrote on Tuesday. The digital levying process was easy for providers and the city administration.
Airbnb will automatically levy a city tax of four francs per night per person when booking is made, starting in September. Among other offers, the tax finances BaselCard, which also makes the free of charge use of public transport possible.
According to a press release, Airbnb had registered around 20,000 accommodation options in 2017. Most hosts were private, and traditional providers such as Bed & Breakfasts used the platform as an additional marketing possibility.
The Grand Council of Basel-Stadt decided in October 2017 that people who book their accommodation in Airbnbs must also pay city tax who book their city tax. The revision of the law should make sure that all providers must pay it.
Computer tomography with lower radiation dose installed at UKBB
The Basel Childrens’ hospital in Basel has become the first in the world to install a new computer technology which allows scans to be made with lower radiation.
The tomography (CT) SOMATOM go.Top scan system, by Siemens Healthineers, means that CT scans can be carried out quicker than usual.
Anaesthesia is also no longer necessary for many patients when it comes to receiving CT scans. The mobile steering of the device enables specialists and parents to stay longer with their children, which leads to an improved well-being of the patients.
Technology in radiation medicine has significantly improved over the last few years. Thanks to the new technology, radiation exposure for patients can significantly be reduced, which is important especially for children. Also, investigations take shorter time. This reduces the necessity of anaesthesia during many investigations. Better picture quality and better resolution of the scans avoid an unnecessary exposure to radiation.
Radiology experts as well as patients have now the possibility to stay with the patient during the preparation for the scan. It helps especially with little children to improve their well-being during the investigation which contributes to optimal results. «We are happy that the Childrens' hospital is the first to use the computer tomography and to offer our patients a gentle photography process according to the latest state-of-the-art technology», said Dr. med. Friederike Prüfer, managing physician of the paediatric radiology unit at UKBB. «The advanced technology of the new device has convinced us. By using the new computer tomography, we have become a reference centre and can actively contribute to the progress and research of paediatric radiology».
After a short time of construction works, UKBB started to operate the new CT SOMATOM go.Top on Monday. Since the existing CT device was failing repeatedly, the new device had to be purchased in a speeded-up process.