Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/236259 
Year of Publication: 
2021
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 14228
Publisher: 
Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
More than 100 million people have been infected and 2.5 million people have died of COVID-19 globally as of February 2021. Mass antigen testing could help to mitigate the pandemic and allow the economy to re-open. We investigate the effects of mass antigen testing on the pandemic, using data from a uniquely designed nation-wide testing implemented in Slovakia in Autumn 2020. After the first round, only districts above an ex-ante unknown prevalence threshold were re-tested. Comparing districts above and below the threshold using a quasi-experimental design, we find that repeated mass antigen testing reduced infections by about 25-30% and decreased R0 by 0.3 two weeks after the re-testing; the effects on incidence peaked around that time and all effects gradually dissipated afterward. These results suggest that mass testing could be an effective tool in curbing the spread of COVID-19, but for lasting effects regular retesting would be necessary.
Subjects: 
COVID-19
COVID-19 policies
antigen testing
non-pharmaceutical interventions
mass testing
JEL: 
D04
I18
J22
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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