COVID-19 lockdowns were “a global policy failure of gigantic proportions,” according to this peer-reviewed new academic study.Herby, Jonung, and Hanke conclude that voluntary changes in behaviour, such as social distancing, played a significant role in mitigating the pandemic – but harsher restrictions, like stay-at-home rules and school closures, generated very high costs but produced only negligible health benefits. ![]() These results pale in comparison to the Imperial College of London’s modelling exercises (March 2020), which predicted that lockdowns would save over 400,000 lives in the United Kingdom and over 2 million lives in the United States.Lockdowns prevented relatively few deaths compared to a typical flu season – in England and Wales, 18,500–24,800 flu deaths occur, in Europe 72,000 flu deaths occur, and in the United States 38,000 flu deaths occur in a typical flu season.This means lockdowns prevented 1,700 deaths in England and Wales, 6,000 deaths across Europe, and 4,000 deaths in the United States.The Herby-Jonung-Hanke meta-analysis found that lockdowns, as reported in studies based on stringency indices in the spring of 2020, reduced mortality by 3.2 per cent when compared to less strict lockdown policies adopted by the likes of Sweden.This result is consistent with the view that voluntary changes in behaviour, such as social distancing, did play an important role in mitigating the pandemic. The results of our meta-analysis support the conclusion that lockdowns in the spring of 2020 had a negligible effect on COVID-19 mortality. Our results are also supported by the natural experiments we have been able to identify. When checked for potential biases, our results are robust. ![]() In comparison, there are approximately 72,000 flu deaths in Europe and 38,000 flu deaths in the United States each year. This translates into approximately 23,000 avoided deaths in Europe and 16,000 in the United States. Based on specific NPIs, we estimate that the average lockdown in Europe and the United States in the spring of 2020 reduced COVID-19 mortality by 10.7 per cent. This translates into approximately 4,000 avoided deaths in Europe and 3,000 in the United States. SIPOs were also relatively ineffective in the spring of 2020, only reducing COVID-19 mortality by 2.0 per cent. This translates into approximately 6,000 avoided deaths in Europe and 4,000 in the United States. Stringency index studies find that the average lockdown in Europe and the United States in the spring of 2020 only reduced COVID-19 mortality by 3.2 per cent. They are separated into three groups: lockdown stringency index studies, shelter-in-place-order (SIPO) studies, and specific NPI studies. Of those, estimates from 22 studies could be converted to standardised measures for inclusion in the metaanalysis. After three levels of screening, 32 studies qualified. We employ a systematic search and screening procedure in which 19,646 studies are identified that could potentially address the purpose of our study. ![]() ![]() We define lockdowns as the imposition of at least one compulsory, non-pharmaceutical intervention (NPI). The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to determine the effect of lockdowns, also referred to as ‘Covid restrictions’, ‘social distancing measures’ etc., on COVID-19 mortality based on available empirical evidence.
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