Don't go cold turkey — at least not when it comes to easing lockdown restrictions
That's the message of a new study that uses mathematical modeling to show that governments shouldn't just turn off lockdown measures all at once for everyone, after infection rates have slowed, unless they want to risk a spike in"Decision makers -- pay attention to the math: emerging from lockdowns requires a gradual and phased approach to keep infection under control," said Michael Bonsall from the Mathematical Ecology Research group at the University of Oxford, who helped...
As spread of the coronavirus shows signs of slowing down in some parts of the world, governments -- and individual states in the US -- are grappling with how to reopen society without catastrophically driving up infection rates again., compared simply ending restrictions for everyone all at once to a more gradual approach.
The model isn't foolproof; it depends heavily on two variables that are hard to pin down precisely."We show that for the gradual release strategy that two model parameters -- the infection rate and the recovery rate from the virus -- are the biggest unknowns that influence our predictions," said Bonsall.
"The model is general and can be applied, with different parameters, across different countries and within regions/states within countries," Bonsall said. The researchers did not specify which groups should be released first, but in the paper suggested younger people, who are on the whole less susceptible to getting severely ill. There are also other ways of dividing the population, said Bonsall.
"You have to realize the virus isn't going to go anywhere; it's going to be present in that, as social mobility increases ... you're going to see an uptick in cases," he told CNN."The question will be, what is the trade-off between that uptick in case and the other aspects of people's lives. How do you make that trade-off?"
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Ramon Magsaysay Awards Presentation canceled due to COVID-19MANILA, Philippines – This year’s Ramon Magsaysay Award Presentation has been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ramon Magsaysay Awards Foundation said on Monday. According to a statement from the Foundation’s Board of Trustees, they were left with no recourse but to cancel the Awards Night due to the dangers that the latest coronavirus […]
Read more »
Remdesivir shortens COVID-19 recovery time, but limits exist—expertsSEOUL — Remdesivir shortens recovery time for novel coronavirus patients, but the experimental drug conventionally used for treating Ebola has limited efficacy in severe cases, health experts
Read more »
COVID-19 cases among overseas Filipinos breach 5,400-markMANILA, Philippines — The number of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) cases among Filipinos abroad breached the 5,400-mark with 13 new cases, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) reported on
Read more »
DepEd postpones face-to-face classes until COVID-19 vaccine is available(UPDATED) Despite calls from parents and teachers to delay classes, the DepEd says it's preparing for a distance learning approach so classes can start on August 24
Read more »
Veggie truck driver brings Benguet town its first COVID-19 caseBAGUIO CITY—A vegetable truck driver, who had been to coronavirus hot spots Metro Manila and Bulacan province, brought the virus to the town of Tuba, Benguet province, becoming its first COVID-19
Read more »
Gov’t releases P95.6-M for additional COVID-19 testing equipmentThe government has released P95.6 million for the Department of Health’s (DOH) procurement of additional testing equipment for the coronavirus infection, according to the latest report of President Duterte to Congress.
Read more »