Effects of Cocooning on Coronavirus Disease Rates after Relaxing Social Distancing

Abstract

As coronavirus disease spreads throughout the United States, policymakers are contemplating reinstatement and relaxation of shelter-in-place orders. By using a model capturing high-risk populations and transmission rates estimated from hospitalization data, we found that postponing relaxation will only delay future disease waves. Cocooning vulnerable populations can prevent overwhelming medical surges.

Keywords

• respiratory infections
• severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2
• SARS-CoV-2
• SARS
• COVID-19
• coronavirus disease