Lockdown prevents 60 million coronavirus cases in the United States: A review

Lockdowns and other coronavirus controls eliminate 60 million coronavirus infections worldwide – and more than 500 million worldwide, according to a new study.

Thesis – Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley and Published Monday in the journal Nature – reviewed 1,717 policies implemented in the United States, China, France, Iran, Italy and South Korea after the virus appeared until April 6, The Berkeley News reports.

Researchers have found that travel restrictions, trade and school closures, shelter-place orders and other provisions – have “significantly and substantially reduced” the spread of the virus.

The study found that by implementing emergency measures, six countries were able to avoid 62 million confirmed cases, including 4.8 million in the United States.

But many infections have not been detected during asymptomatic outbreaks, so researchers estimate that locking orders actually prevented about 530 million infections in those countries, including about 60 million in the United States.

Instead, COVID-19 cases in the United States are approaching 2 million and at least 110,514 people have died of the virus, according to Johns Hopkins University statistics.

“The past several months have been extraordinarily difficult, but through our personal sacrifices, people everywhere have contributed to one of humanity’s greatest collective achievements,” said Solomon Hsiang, director of the Goldman School of Public Policy and director of Berkeley’s Global Policy Lab. .

“I don’t think any human endeavor has saved so many lives in such a short time,” the study’s lead author added. There are huge personal costs to staying home and canceling events, but the data shows that every day makes a profound difference. We have changed the course of history by using science and collaborating. “

Hsiang performed the first peer-reviewed analysis of local, regional and national policies with an international team at the Global Policy Lab, all of which operate under lockdown regulations.

China’s policies prevented more than 37 million confirmed cases, a total of 285 million cases, and South Korea’s controls excluding 11.5 million confirmed cases and 38 million total cases.

According to the study, infections are growing at an average of 38 percent a day – doubling every two days in every country – before emergency policies reduce the outbreak.

Worldwide cases of coronavirus are approaching 7 million, and more than 400,000 people have died, but the number could have been much higher without policy interventions, the study says.

“It looks like the roof is going to fall, but we grabbed it before it hit everyone. It was hard and exhausting and we still have it. But by coming together, we have done something as a community that no one can do alone, and this has never been done before, ”Hsiang said.

Researchers from the United States, China, France, New Zealand, Singapore and South Korea – have found that home isolation, business closures and locksmiths often have tangible benefits.

In some countries, such as Iran and Italy, travel restrictions and meeting restrictions have had mixed results, but the results have been less clear in other countries, including the United States.

The study found no strong evidence that school closures had any impact, but researchers warned that their findings were not conclusive.