www.noahpinion.blog/p/europes-crusade-against-air-conditioning?utm_source=substa...

The Canton of Geneva’s official guidance does not say that an applicant must generally prove a medical need to install comfort air conditioning.

Instead, the standard approval path is to show that cooling is needed because the building cannot maintain minimum summer comfort even after architectural/technical measures are used. Geneva says AC installations "may be authorised" if "the proof of the need to cool is demonstrated", including cases where the room temperature exceeds the SIA 180 comfort threshold for a specified number of hours, or where internal heat loads exceed specified limits.

The same page then lists medical necessity separately, under "Dérogation" (derogation/exemption): a request for derogation is possible if "the installation is necessary for medical reasons". In other words, a medical certificate is one special-case exception, not the general rule for all AC permits.

So the article’s wording is too strong: Geneva requires an energy/building permit and proof of cooling need under technical criteria, not a blanket showing of medical need.