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The Effect of School Visits During COVID-19 on COVID-19 Outcomes

Dena M. Bravata, Jonathan H. Cantor, Neeraj Sood, Christopher M. Whaley

ResearchPosted on rand.org Jun 18, 2025Published in: Journal of Health Economics (Journal Pre-proof, May 2025). doi: 10.1016/j.jhealeco.2025.103025

The effects of school closures on COVID-19 transmission remains unclear, even after the conclusion of the national Public Health Emergency. We use healthcare claims data from 130 million household-week observations linked to smartphone mobility data to measure the effects of changes in county-level visits to schools on COVID-19 outcomes. We use a triple-differences approach that leverages within-county differences in exposure between families with and without school-age children and find modest impacts. We find increases in COVID-19 infection rates, with larger differences in low-income and higher COVID-19 prevalence counties.

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Document Details

  • Copyright: Elsevier B.V
  • Availability: Non-RAND
  • Year: 2025
  • Pages: 48
  • Document Number: EP-70951

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