This paper tests whether the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency sick leave provision of the bipartisan Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) reduced the spread of the virus. Using a difference-in-differences strategy, we compare pre-post FFCRA changes in newly reported COVID-19 cases in states where workers gained the right to take paid sick leave (treatment group) to states where workers already had access to paid sick leave (control group). We adjust for differences in testing, day-of-the-week reporting, structural state differences, general virus dynamics, and policies such as stay-at-home orders (SHO). Compared to the control group and relative to the pre-FFCRA period, states that gained access to paid sick leave through FFCRA saw a statistically significant 400 fewer confirmed cases per day. This estimate translates into roughly 1 prevented COVID-19 case per day, per 1300 workers who newly gained the option to take up to two weeks of paid sick leave. [Editor's Note: This Fast Track Ahead Of Print article is the accepted version of the peer-reviewed manuscript. The final edited version will appear in an upcoming issue of Health Affairs.].
COVID-19 Emergency Sick Leave Has Helped Flatten The Curve In The United States.