Arbeitspapier

Assessing Targeted Containment Policies to Fight COVID-19

The large economic costs of full-blown lockdowns in response to COVID-19 outbreaks, coupled with heterogeneous mortality rates across age groups, led to question non-discriminatory containment mea- sures. In this paper we provide an assessment of the targeted approach to containment. We propose a SIR-macro model that allows for heterogeneous agents in terms of mortality rates and contact rates, and in which the government optimally bans people from working. We find that under a targeted pol- icy, the optimal containment reaches a larger portion of the population than under a blanket policy and is held in place for longer. Compared to a blanket policy, a targeted approach results in a smaller death count. Yet, it is not a panacea: the recession is larger under such approach as the containment policy applies to a larger fraction of people, remains in place for longer, and herd immunity is achieved later. Moreover, we find that increased interactions between low- and high-risk individuals effectively reduce the benefits of a targeted approach to containment.

Language
Englisch

Bibliographic citation
Series: GLO Discussion Paper ; No. 752

Classification
Wirtschaft
General Aggregative Models: General
Public Economics: General
Health: General
Subject
Optimal containment policies
COVID-19
heterogeneous agents
mortality rate
voluntary social distancing

Event
Geistige Schöpfung
(who)
Checo, Ariadne
Grigoli, Francesco
Mota, Jose M.
Event
Veröffentlichung
(who)
Global Labor Organization (GLO)
(where)
Essen
(when)
2021

Handle
Last update
10.03.2025, 11:44 AM CET

Data provider

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Object type

  • Arbeitspapier

Associated

  • Checo, Ariadne
  • Grigoli, Francesco
  • Mota, Jose M.
  • Global Labor Organization (GLO)

Time of origin

  • 2021

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