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Critical Findings on COVID-19 Select Publications from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (2021) / Chapter Skim
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Rapid Expert Consultation on Social Distancing for the COVID-19 Pandemic (March 19, 2020)
Pages 12-15

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From page 12...
... Ned Calonge, The Colorado Trust; Sue Curry, University of Iowa; and Steven Teutsch, University of California, Los Angeles, reviewed this document, and Ellen Wright Clayton, Vanderbilt University, approved the document on behalf of the Report Review Committee. The attached materials summarize evidence bearing on the effectiveness of social distancing measures, and they demonstrate that social distancing measures are effective.
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From page 13...
... For example, one study of 34 U.S. cities during the 1918 1919 influenza pandemic found that those communities that implemented social distancing measures earlier experienced greater delays in reaching peak mortality, lower peak mortality rates, and lower total mortality.
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From page 14...
... From February 2, 2020, and on, cordon sanitaire, suspension of public transportation, closure of entertainment venues and public spaces continued, and the following measures were also implemented: centralized isolation in designated hospitals for cases; mobile-cabin hospitals, schools, and hotels for exposed and possible cases; universal and strict stay-at-home policy for all residents unless permitted; widespread temperature and symptom monitoring; and universal screening and reporting. With these added measures the basic reproductive number fell to 0.32, and the epidemic subsided.
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From page 15...
... Judgments about when to suspend which social distancing measures will be critical and should involve discussions with public health experts, mathematical modelers, economists, and social and behavioral scientists. Decision makers will be greatly aided by ongoing data collection and disease monitoring.
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