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Assessing the effectiveness of public health interventions for Covid-19 in Greece and Cyprus.

Nikolaos ZahariadisTheofanis ExadaktylosJörgen SparfEvangelia PetridouAlexandros KyriakidisIoannis Papadopoulos
Published in: European policy analysis (2022)
In this article, we statistically examine the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) implemented by the national governments of Greece and Cyprus during 2020 to (a) limit the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and (b) mitigate the economic fallout brought about by the Covid-19 pandemic. Applying a modified health belief model, we hypothesize that behavioral outcomes at the policy level are a function of NPIs, perceived severity, and social context. We employ a Prais-Winsten estimation in 2-week averages and report panel-corrected standard errors to find that NPIs have clear, yet differential, effects on public health and the economy in terms of statistical significance and time lags. The study provides a critical framework to inform future interventions during emerging pandemics.
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