Chris Lange, FISM News
[elfsight_social_share_buttons id=”1″]
A newly released study out of Johns Hopkins University found that COVID-19 lockdowns in the spring of 2020 had “little to no effect” on mortality rates.
Researchers from the U.S., Denmark, and Sweden conducted the meta-analysis to determine whether empirical evidence supports lockdowns by analyzing the effects of school and business closures, travel bans, and social gathering limitations in the U.S. and Europe. After poring through data the study found that such interventions did “little to nothing” in the way of reducing COVID deaths and instead “imposed enormous economic and social costs.”
Researchers ultimately concluded that lockdowns are “ill-founded and should be rejected as a pandemic policy instrument.”
The analysis began with 18,590 studies, which were then narrowed down to 34 “‘qualified’ studies after three levels of review.” From those, “24 qualified for inclusion in the meta-analysis.” The determination from the meta-analysis revealed that COVID-19 mortality was only reduced by 0.2% on average as a result of the lockdowns that were strictly enforced across the globe.
Researchers did find that one intervention – closing non-essential businesses – had “some effect” in reducing mortality by 10.6% in 2020 but noted this was “likely to be related to the closure of bars.”
The 61-page report also makes reference to the “devastating” unintended consequences of lockdowns, including “reducing economic activity, raising unemployment, reducing schooling, causing political unrest, contributing to domestic violence, and undermining liberal democracy.”
“The evidence fails to confirm that lockdowns have a significant effect in reducing COVID-19 mortality. The effect is little to none,” the researchers concluded.
Many Americans view the study as a long-overdue validation of what they have been saying for some time:
File this under: We could have told you that…but thanks Johns Hopkinshttps://t.co/OjcssOc7FY
— jolevesque (@lily_loo23) February 1, 2022
A Johns Hopkins University study tells us what we’ve known for two years: “We find no evidence that lockdowns, school closures, border closures and limiting gatherings have had a noticeable effect on COVID-19 mortality,”
— Eric Matheny 🎙️ (@ericmmatheny) February 1, 2022