The effects of COVID-19 public health policies on non-COVID-19-related mortality are unclear.
Here, using death registries based on 300 million Chinese people and a difference-in-differences design, researchers found that China’s strict anti-contagion policies during the COVID-19 pandemic significantly reduced non-COVID-19 mortality outside Wuhan (by 4.6%).
The health benefits persisted and became even greater after the measures were loosened: mortality was reduced by 12.5% in the medium term.
Significant changes in people’s behaviors (for example, wearing masks and practicing social distancing) and reductions in air pollution and traffic accidents could have driven these results.
They estimated that 54,000 lives could have been saved from non-COVID-19 causes during the 50 days of strict policies and 293,000 in the subsequent 115 days.
The results suggest that virus countermeasures not only effectively controlled COVID-19 in China but also brought about unintended and substantial public health benefits.
Published: 29 November 2021
source:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41562-021-01189-3
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-021-01189-3
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