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
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Englisch
- Bibliographic citation
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Series: GLO Discussion Paper ; No. 752
- Classification
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Wirtschaft
General Aggregative Models: General
Public Economics: General
Health: General
- Subject
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Optimal containment policies
COVID-19
heterogeneous agents
mortality rate
voluntary social distancing
- Event
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Geistige Schöpfung
- (who)
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Checo, Ariadne
Grigoli, Francesco
Mota, Jose M.
- Event
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Veröffentlichung
- (who)
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Global Labor Organization (GLO)
- (where)
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Essen
- (when)
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2021
- Handle
- Last update
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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