Calculating Costs, Benefits of Lockdowns

March 31, 2020

How do economists calculate the value of preventing COVID-19 deaths? The authors of a recent article published on Forbes outline the methods economists use to project the potential impact on costs.

While putting a dollar amount on a human life may make some “uncomfortable,” the authors write, informing public policy requires these kinds of “hard-nosed” discussions.

“For example, if we said that it was worth spending a trillion dollars per person to prevent unnecessary deaths, we’d run out of money in a day,” they write.

To read the full article, click here.

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