ZURICH, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Switzerland said on Wednesday it will pay medical costs of Italian victims of the Crans-Montana fire, backing down after its intial demand for reimbursement from Rome was described by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as "disgraceful".
Forty-one people were killed and 115 injured when a fire ripped through a crowded bar during a New Year's Eve party in the Swiss ski resort of Crans-Montana. Twelve Italian victims were treated in Switzerland in the first weeks of 2026 before being moved to hospitals in Italy.
Meloni welcomed the Swiss decision to cover 1.5 million Swiss francs ($1.9 million) worth of medical costs.
"I am pleased with this solution: no burden will fall on the families or on Italy," Meloni said in a statement.
"My thoughts go, once again, to the families of the victims and of the injured young people, who are facing immense pain with extraordinary dignity and strength," she added.
Under an agreement between Switzerland and the European Union, countries usually pay for their own insured citizens when they are treated abroad.
One Swiss-insured patient was treated in Italy.
"The Swiss government is aware of the immeasurable suffering that weighs on the families of the victims and on all those affected," it said.
"The decision to waive the reimbursement of treatment costs is in line with the principle of reciprocity and sends a signal of Switzerland's recognition of the solidarity shown to it," it added, citing the help received from Italy and other countries.
(Reporting by John Revill in Zurich and Cristina Carlevaro in Milan; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)
