Association Between Statewide School Closure and COVID-19 Incidence and Mortality in the US

Abstract

The novel severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) causing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first identified in the US in January 2020, with subsequent spread throughout the country. In the absence of effective treatments, governors and state health officials enacted policies aimed at reducing infections through nonpharmaceutical interventions.¹ The nonpharmaceutical interventions included: school closure, nonessential business closure, restaurant and bar closure, and prohibition of gatherings with more than 10 people. With limited precedent and a paucity of evidence on the effectiveness of nonpharmaceutical interventions, policies varied markedly state to state in scope and timing.