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Epidemiology

Public Health Preparedness
commentary
Rebuild Public Health for the Next Pandemic?
Edward W. Chan, Andrew M. Parker
Aug 6, 2021
The RAND Blog
COVID-19 exposed how underprepared the United States was for a pandemic and raised questions about preparedness for the next one. With political will to spend money on public health, how can America take a holistic view of all the options? And how should investments be prioritized?
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Modeling and Simulation
commentary
We Studied COVID-19 Cases After Birthdays. Family Gatherings Can Still Be Dangerous
Christopher M. Whaley @cm_whaley, Anupam B. Jena
Jun 28, 2021
USA Today
The high toll of COVID-19 in the United States is likely partly due to informal social gatherings that have not been subject to state and local restrictions. They are often small, intimate, and involve people we trust. And that makes them dangerous.
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Epidemiology
commentary
Will the United States Declare Freedom from COVID-19 Too Soon?
Lawrence Baker, Pedro Nascimento de Lima @pedrolima_n, Jeanne S. Ringel @JeanneRingel, Raffaele Vardavas
May 21, 2021
The RAND Blog
RAND analyzed what could happen with COVID-19 deaths in the United States if restrictions all go away on July 4. Fully reopening the economy before Biden's vaccination target was met doubled the average number of COVID-19 deaths between Independence Day and the end of the year.
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Epidemiology
commentary
Do Children Really Transmit COVID-19 Less Than Adults? The Evidence Is Questionable
Laura F. Garabedian, Rebecca Lee Haffajee
Aug 31, 2020
USA Today
The theory that children are unlikely to contract or spread COVID-19 may feel reassuring, but it's based on flawed science. Until more is known, adopting aggressive strategies to limit viral spread in schools is the best way to keep students and teachers safe.
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Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
blog
What Happens When States Reopen, Truth Decay, Telemedicine: RAND Weekly Recap
May 22, 2020
This weekly recap focuses on the health and economic consequences of states reopening, the dangers of Truth Decay during the coronavirus crisis, helping refugees, and more.
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Decisionmaking
commentary
Relaxing COVID-19 Restrictions Presents Stark Health and Economic Choices
Jeanne S. Ringel @JeanneRingel, Raffaele Vardavas, Aaron Strong
May 18, 2020
The RAND Blog
RAND's new COVID-19 interventions impact tool uses epidemiological and economic models and continually refreshed data to estimate what could happen as restrictions are eased. The tool won't make the choices confronting state leaders less painful. But it can provide clear, evidence-based estimates of the health and economic trade-offs.
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Community Health and Well-Being
q&a
Reopening America—The Health and Economic Trade-Offs: Q&A with RAND Experts
May 4, 2020
Local and state officials are thinking through whether, when, and how to lift social-distancing restrictions. We asked three RAND researchers about the complex problem of reopening.
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Mortality
commentary
Estimates of COVID-19's Fatality Rate Might Change. And Then Change Again.
Raffaele Vardavas, Courtney A. Gidengil @c_gidengil, Sarah A. Nowak
Mar 11, 2020
The RAND Blog
With infections of the new coronavirus confirmed in countries around the world, people are following the daily tally of COVID-19 cases, wondering exactly how lethal this new disease is. The truth is, it's hard to know.
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Epidemiology
commentary
An Outbreak of Outbreaks
Melinda Moore, Andrew M. Parker, Courtney A. Gidengil @c_gidengil
Jun 11, 2014
The Health Care Blog
Lately, stories about outbreaks seem to be spreading faster than the diseases themselves. An outbreak of measles in Ohio is just part of an 18-year high of U.S. cases. Meanwhile, polio continues to circulate in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Nigeria, while spreading to other countries, like Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, and Syria.
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