How to Prepare for a Pandemic Like COVID-19

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There was an early window of opportunity when the virus could have been eliminated. Had harsher measures been adopted sooner and more widely, the pandemic might have played out very differently. Ethical choices could look very different if the next pandemic is caused by an influenza virus that predominantly affects and is spread by young children. The public needs to know more about how pandemic control policies are decided.

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, many countries introduced strict lockdowns to help prevent spread of the disease. Since then, researchers have been studying the effects of these measures to help inform responses to future crises.

Conclusions suggest that countries that acted swiftly to bring in strict measures did best at preserving lives and their economies, but analysing the competing costs and benefits of lockdowns has been tough, as this work often comes down not to scientific calculations, but value judgements.

This is an audio version of our Feature: What scientists have learnt from COVID lockdowns

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