ABSTRACT
Shelter in place (SIP) orders were instituted by states to alleviate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, states proceeded to reopen as SIPs were noted to be hurting the economy. We evaluated whether these reopenings affected COVID-19 hospitalizations. We collected public data on US state reopening orders and COVID-19 hospitalizations from March 8 to August 8, 2020. We utilized a doubling time metric to compare increase in hospitalizations in line with reopenings and proceeded to quantify the impact of reopening orders on cumulative hospitalizations. We found that some reopenings increased hospitalizations, and this varied by state. We also discovered that the most negatively impactful reopenings overall tended to be restaurants/bars (-92%) and houses of worship (-63.6%). Without data-backed guidance on reopening states, the healthcare burden from COVID-19 will likely persist. State governments should use data to understand the potential effects of these reopenings to guide future policies.
