Behavioral Implications in COVID-19 Spread and Vaccinations

Autor: Karim Chichakly
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Zdroj: Systems, Vol 9, Iss 4, p 72 (2021)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2079-8954
DOI: 10.3390/systems9040072
Popis: COVID-19 vaccinations have been administered quickly in the USA. However, a surprisingly large number of Americans are unwilling to get vaccinated. Without enough people getting vaccinated, the pandemic will not end. The longer the pandemic persists, the more opportunities exist for more virulent strains to emerge. This model looks at the effects of people’s behavior in containing and ending the COVID-19 pandemic in the USA. Human behavior adds several feedback loops to the standard SEIR model. Comparisons are made between cases with and without behavior loops, with reduced adherence to the recommended or mandated masks and social distancing, with and without the vaccine, and the effects of an early mask mandate termination. The results suggest human behavior must be accounted for in epidemiology models and that removing masks before enough vaccine are administered not only puts those vaccinated at risk, but allows the disease to readily spread again.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals