In the US and Europe, lockdowns introduced in the spring of 2020 due to the coronavirus reduced the death rate from COVID-19 by only 0.2%, but at the same time led to huge negative economic and social consequences, Fox News reported, citing data from a study by Johns Hopkins University.

As a result, lockdown policies are unfounded and should be abandoned as a policy tool [to counter] the pandemic, the study says.

Scientists believe that self-isolation of patients with COVID-19 is a more effective measure, since it has reduced the death rate from the disease by 2.9%. However, this measure also increased the degree of negative impact, including within the family, and deprived infected people of access to safer places - parks, beaches and other open areas, experts noted.

The study says that the lockdowns have led to increased unemployment, a decline in the quality of the educational process, an increase in cases of domestic violence and drug overdoses.