Skip to main content

First round of US lockdowns cost $169billion and saved 29,000 lives - about $6million for each death that was avoided, study finds

A new study has estimated the cost of government lockdowns in the early phase of the coronavirus pandemic in America, finding that $6 million in damage was done for every life saved.

Researchers from HEC Paris business school and Bocconi University in Milan concluded that U.S. closures from March through May saved 29,000 lives — at a cost of $169 billion, or around $6 million per person.

The study examined the costs of declining company market values and job losses during the shutdowns, which threw some 40 million people out of work.

'Governors saved lives on the one hand, but reduced economic activity on the other,' Jean-Noel Barrot, a professor at HEC Paris and member of France's National Assembly, told AFP. 

A Starbucks Coffee in Harlem is closed during April lockdowns. A new study found that $6 million in economic damage was done for every life saved

A Starbucks Coffee in Harlem is closed during April lockdowns. A new study found that $6 million in economic damage was done for every life saved

Jobless claims soared in March, with some 40 million losing jobs during lockdowns

Jobless claims soared in March, with some 40 million losing jobs during lockdowns

How to address the world's largest coronavirus outbreak has become a vexing, politically charged question in the United States, where the virus has infected more than 12.2 million people and killed nearly 257,000 since March. 

Now virus cases are surging nationwide, prompting many states to again implement restrictions on businesses.

But Barrot warns that changes in Americans' behavior may make renewed business restrictions less effective.

'As people become, perhaps, more responsible, as they wear more masks and so on, the effect that we're seeing on infection is going to probably go down,' he said. 

The March orders were applied unevenly by state and local governments, but caused unprecedented disruptions to the world's largest economy, prompting a debate over the government's role in forcing people to change their lifestyles in the name of public health.

Critics have said the restrictions, which were relaxed to varying degrees in the spring and summer, are a costly assault on personal freedom, while supporters say they're one of the ways the out-of-control virus can be contained.

Businesses in Manhattan's Chinatown are seen shuttered during lockdows there in May

Businesses in Manhattan's Chinatown are seen shuttered during lockdows there in May

Federal data shows new jobless claims (top) and continuing claims (bottom)

Federal data shows new jobless claims and continuing claims

A June study published in Nature found that without social distancing and business restrictions, the US would have seen cases hit 5.2 million in early April, rather than their actual level of around 365,000.

Researchers at Columbia University meanwhile found that more than 35,000 lives could have been saved had such measures been put in place just a week earlier than their mid-March imposition.

Though nowhere near as stringent as in other countries where curfews were strictly enforced and rulebreakers penalized, the restrictions' effects on the U.S. economy were seen almost immediately.

Weekly applications for jobless aid shot up, with nearly 6.9 million filings in the week ended March 28, while the unemployment rate skyrocketed to 14.7 percent in April from its historic low of 3.5 percent in February.

Data from Oxford Economics shows the deep impact on a range of economic factors

Data from Oxford Economics shows the deep impact on a range of economic factors

A closed Club Monaco store is covered in plywood, as retail sales suffer record drop during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease in New York this April

A closed Club Monaco store is covered in plywood, as retail sales suffer record drop during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease in New York this April

Using data from JHU and the U.S. Census Bureau, Barrot determined the various U.S. shutdowns cost about 0.8 percent of total US GDP, but reduced the death toll in the period surveyed by around a quarter.

States' moves to loosen the restrictions and massive stimulus spending helped the economy heal, pushing the unemployment rate to 6.9 percent in October and weekly jobless aid filings down to around 750,000 — still higher than the worst single week of the 2008-10 global financial crisis.

While Barrot said new blanket restrictions may not be as effective in preventing deaths this time around, but they will certainly remain expensive.

'What we need to think of contingency plans to avoid having to, so to speak, burn so much of our collective wealth in order to stay alive,' Barrot said.

Popular posts from this blog

Study Abroad USA, College of Charleston, Popular Courses, Alumni

Thinking for Study Abroad USA. School of Charleston, the wonderful grounds is situated in the actual middle of a verifiable city - Charleston. Get snatched up by the wonderful and customary engineering, beautiful pathways, or look at the advanced steel and glass building which houses the School of Business. The grounds additionally gives students simple admittance to a few major tech organizations like Amazon's CreateSpace, Google, TwitPic, and so on. The school offers students nearby as well as off-grounds convenience going from completely outfitted home lobbies to memorable homes. It is prepared to offer different types of assistance and facilities like clubs, associations, sporting exercises, support administrations, etc. To put it plainly, the school grounds is rising with energy and there will never be a dull second for students at the College of Charleston. Concentrate on Abroad USA is improving and remunerating for your future. The energetic grounds likewise houses various

Best MBA Online Colleges in the USA

“Opportunities never open, instead we create them for us”. Beginning with this amazing saying, let’s unbox today’s knowledge. Love Business and marketing? Want to make a high-paid career in business administration? Well, if yes, then mate, we have got you something amazing to do!   We all imagine an effortless future with a cozy house and a laptop. Well, well! You can make this happen. Today, with this guide, we will be exploring some of the top-notch online MBA universities and institutes in the USA. Let’s get started! Why learn Online MBA from the USA? Access to More Options This online era has given a second chance to children who want to reflect on their careers while managing their hectic schedules. In this, the internet has played a very crucial in rejuvenating schools, institutes, and colleges to give the best education to students across the globe. Graduating with Less Debt Regular classes from high reputed institutes often charge heavy tuition fees. However onl

Sickening moment maskless 'Karen' COUGHS in the face of grocery store customer, then claims she doesn't have to wear a mask because she 'isn't sick'

A woman was captured on camera following a customer through a supermarket as she coughs on her after claiming she does not need a mask because she is not sick.  Video of the incident, which has garnered hundreds of thousands of views on Twitter alone, allegedly took place in a Su per Saver in Lincoln, Nebraska according to Twitter user @davenewworld_2. In it, an unidentified woman was captured dramatically coughing as she smiles saying 'Excuse me! I'm coming through' in the direction of the customer recording her. Scroll down for video An unidentified woman was captured dramatically coughing as she smiles saying 'Excuse me! I'm coming through' in the direction of a woman recording her A woman was captured on camera following a customer as she coughs on her in a supermarket without a mask on claiming she does not need one because she is not sick @chaiteabugz #karen #covid #karens #karensgonewild #karensalert #masks we were just wearing a mask at the store. ¿ o