The Indirect Health Effects of COVID-19

The full extent of COVID-19's impact remains to be seen. At CGD, we've been reviewing the indirect health effects brought on by disruptions to essential health services. Over the past year CGD partnered with researchers in Kenya, the Philippines, South Africa,and Uganda to document, from a whole-of-health perspective, what we know about the nature, scale, and scope of the disruptions to essential health services in those countries, and the health effects of such disruptions. Find out more below!

More from the Series

Blog Post
Plus ça change: COVID-19 and Its Collateral Impact during the Vaccine Era
Damian Walker et al.
July 01, 2021
Over the past year we partnered with researchers in Kenya, the Philippines, South Africa, and Uganda to document, from a whole-of-health perspective, what we know about the nature, scale, and scope of COVID-19’s disruptions to essential health services in those countries, and the health effects of s...
WORKING PAPERS
The Indirect Health Effects of COVID-19: Emerging Findings from Kenya, the Philippines, South Africa, and Uganda
Diana Beatriz S. Bayani et al.
June 29, 2021
COVID-19 has caused significant morbidity and mortality, both directly and indirectly via the disruption to routine health services. Evidence on the indirect health impacts has largely been anecdotal or modeled, and cause/program-specific. We aimed to document the indirect health impacts in four cou...
Blog Post
Children Bear the Brunt of Covid-19’s Impact on Health Services in the Philippines
Valerie Gilbert Ulep et al.
May 11, 2021
The Philippines has been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, with 1.06 million confirmed cases and 17,500 deaths as of May 3, 2021. These numbers are likely just the tip of the iceberg as the pandemic’s indirect health effects have largely gone unmeasured.
WORKING PAPERS
The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Social Health Insurance Claims for High-Burden Diseases in the Philippines
Valerie Gilbert Ulep et al.
May 11, 2021
In the Philippines, anecdotes on the dwindling use of essential healthcare services as an indirect consequence of COVID-19 pandemic are mounting, but compelling evidence remains scarce up to this day. In this study, we examined the magnitude of decline in insurance claims of twelve high burden ...
Blog Post
The Indirect Health Effects of COVID-19: Emerging Findings from Kenya, the Philippines, South Africa, and Uganda
Carleigh Krubiner et al.
March 30, 2021
Much of the initial COVID response focused on limiting cases and deaths, without sufficient attention to the broader indirect impacts. A new CGD series investigates.
WORKING PAPERS
Direct and Indirect Health Effects of Lockdown in South Africa
Benjamin Smart et al.
March 30, 2021
This paper investigates both the potential impact of national lockdown measures on COVID-19 transmission, and other health and non-health indicators in South Africa, based on available data. We present findings relating to both “costs” and “benefits” in health terms of the national lockdown side by ...
WORKING PAPERS
Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Health Services and Mitigation Measures in Uganda
Nazarius Tumwesigye et al.
March 30, 2021
On 21st March 2020, Uganda reported its first COVID-19 case. The government responded by instituting a lockdown and other measures. We assess the effects of the COVID-19 containment measures on health services to better inform the next preventive measures. We use a case study approach that involved ...