The response to the COVID pandemic varied vastly from state to state. A new report ranking those responses found that Republican-led states performed substantially better and, according to The Daily Wire, “Democrat-led states dominating the bottom of the list.”
The report vindicates Republicans—particularly Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida, whom the Biden administration has harshly criticized.
The Committee To Unleash Prosperity (CUP) coordinated the comprehensive report. The National Bureau of Economic Research published their findings.
Statements provided to The Daily Wire noted the focus and scope of the research:
“The Report Card on the States measures and compares state performance on three metrics: the economy, education, and mortality from the virus.
“It answers the question: how did states do in balancing the health of their citizens, allowing their economies to remain operational and keeping job losses low, and keeping their schools open so that school-aged children did not suffer long term educational setbacks.”
“Each of these three metrics were equally weighted. The states that received an F grade were New Jersey, New York, California, Illinois and Washington, D.C.”
“These states performed poorly on every measure. They had high age-adjusted death rates; they had high unemployment and significant GDP losses, and they kept their schools shutdown much longer than almost all other states,” it added. “The top performers were Utah, Nebraska, and Vermont with Montana and Florida right behind.”
“A total of 18 states received a grade of A or B. Of the top-ranking 18 states, 16 are led by Republican governors. No Democrat-led states appeared in the top five.”
The “biggest mistake,” the study noted, was the long-term closures of businesses and schools.
CUP Co-Founder Stephen Moore stated: “Shutting down their economies and schools was by far the biggest mistake governors and state officials made during Covid, particularly in blue states,” said “We hope the results of this study will persuade governors not to close schools and businesses the next time we have a new virus variant.”
The study also found that despite Florida’s older population and lose restrictions, the death rate was statistically the same as that of California, which implemented ridged restrictions even among its younger population.
The study also found that lockdowns were counterproductive and that for each percentage point increase in the unemployment rate, there were 920 more suicides and 650 more homicides. Lockdowns were also found to contribute to increased mental health problems, domestic violence, and homelessness.
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