Social Safety Nets and COVID-19 Stay Home Orders across US States: A Comparative Policy Analysis

Abstract

Sub-national policy responses to the COVID-19 pandemic have been politicized in the US. Survival analysis was run on when stay-at-home orders were enacted and lifted across US states from March to June 2020. Results show a strong linkage between pre-crisis social safety net protections (paid sick leave, expanded Medicaid Health Insurance, higher state minimum wage, higher welfare benefits) and crisis policy response – whether a state shuts down earlier and reopens later. Republican-controlled states imposed stay-at-home orders later and reopened sooner. This comparative policy research shows that providing social safety net protections is a policy complement to public health.

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