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This paper presents new evidence on the size and direction of governments' R&D funding response to the COVID-19 pandemic through the exploration of a novel data infrastructure, the OECD Fundstat initiative for the analysis of government-funded R&D projects. The document reports on the exploratory development and application of automatic classification tools to detect relevant COVID-19 R&D funding, map salient topics and classify and allocate project funding according to priorities in the WHO COVID-19 R&D Blueprint, as well as comparing results with similar analysis of scientific publication output data. The results provide new insights on which areas of enquiry were prioritised by governmental R&D funding bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of OECD Social, Employment & Migration Working Papers is the property of Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper analyses the impact of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) extensions on jobseeker households in selected US states and examines how these extensions compare to the pre-pandemic policies. The analysis finds that PUA extensions increase benefit duration for all jobseekers, but due to interactions between other government benefits, this translates to significant increases in benefit generosity only for jobseekers without children. This has an impact on the financial incentives to take up employment, although incentives are still above the OECD average. PUA extensions have little impact for people who have been unemployed for a very long time, and jobseekers with no recent contribution history. PUA extensions also have minimal impact on jobless families with children who continue to receive less support compared to other OECD countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how the operations of an academy library got transfigured during closures due to COVID-19. The author offers tips on how to maintain access to resources, how to engage students in learning, and support academy staff. This paper reflect how the GEMS Modern Academy school library promoted reading during distance learning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic caused an unprecedented global economic downturn, affecting productivity, business dynamics, and digital technology adoption. Using a comprehensive commercial database from Spiceworks Ziff Davis, this study analyses the firm-level drivers of digitalisation during the pandemic across 20 European countries. The findings show that a considerable share of firms introduced new digital technologies during the COVID-19 crisis. Notably, firms that were larger, more digitalised, and more productive before the pandemic were more likely to introduce new digital technologies in 2020 and 2021. Additionally, firms with pre-existing complementary technologies had a higher likelihood of adopting digital applications that gained momentum during the pandemic (such as digital commerce, collaborative software, cloud, and analytics). These patterns may increase polarisation among the best-performing firms and the rest of the business population. Public policy can play a key role in fostering an inclusive digital transformation in the post-pandemic era. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The outbreak of COVID-19 and the unprecedented measures taken by many countries to slow down the spread of the coronavirus caused large economic and psychological costs. This paper uses real time survey data from two waves run at the end of March and in mid- April to provide a snapshot of the actual labour market outcomes in twelve countries. Our study reveals large cross-country differences. At the end of March, when large disparity existed in the diffusion of the pandemic and in the lockdown measures, a large share of employed individuals had stopped working in France (38%) and Italy (47%), but much less in Australia (13%) and the US (10%). Large differences remained in mid-April. Yet, some common patterns emerge. Labour market outcomes varied according to workers' educational attainments and occupation types. College graduates and white collars worked more from home and less from the regular workplace. Instead, low educated workers and blue collars were more likely to remain in the regular work place or to stop working. Similar patterns emerge with respect to the workers' (family) income. This evidence suggests that initial labour market effects of COVID-19 (and of the lockdown measures) may have contributed to increase pre-existing inequalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines blog posts shared on a popular school librarian association website. Posts were written by school librarians, school library supervisors, book authors, and school library educators in various settings. The website posts were searched using the term COVID-19. The search returned 89 results written between March 2020 and June 2021. The analysis focused on the topics that were mentioned the most, according to the categories associated with the blog posts. A review of how the posts evolved is also presented. Results suggest that the most important topics that the readers of the blog needed to endure the pandemic included student engagement, teaching models, leadership, and advocacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A country report for New Zealand is presented from the publisher OECD Economic Surveys, with topics including economic outlook, House prices; and New Zealand's initial response to Covid-19 infection.

A country report for Tunisia is presented from publisher the PRS Group with topics including economic forecasts, mitigating the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the economy, and Gross domestic product.

A country report for Iraq is presented from publisher the PRS Group with topics including economic forecasts, mitigating the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the economy, and Gross domestic product.

A country report of Sweden is presented from publisher "OECD Economic Surveys" on topics including impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the economy of the country; labour market reforms and direct public investment and enhancing conditions for private investment.

A country report of Netherlands from publisher OECD Economic Surveys, on topics including impact of COVID-19 pandemic on economy Investments for sustainable growth; digital transformation; and shortage of information and communication technology (ICT) graduates.

Copyright of OECD Social, Employment & Migration Working Papers is the property of Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

A country report for Central America is presented from publisher Fitch Solutions with topics including impact of Covid-19 pandemic on economy of the region; current account deficit in Panama and forecast of gross domestic product (GDP) in Costa Rica.

A country report for emerging markets of several countries including Russia, Lebanon, and Liberia is presented from publisher FitchSolutions with topics including significant revisions to individual economies; the potential for financial market volatility; and Covid-19 related disruptions.

A country report for several countries including China; Malaysia; and the Philippines is presented from publisher FitchSolutions with topics including monetary policy, gross domestic product (GDP) of the country, and impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The article presents a country report of emerging markets discussing the less speed economic growth after the Covid-19 pandemic.

The article presents a country report of emerging markets discussing the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the oil industry and global economies.

A country report for Algeria is presented from the publisher EEAG Report 2021, with topics including economic outlook, Macroeconomic Conditions; and Social Capital.

ISSUE: States are facing large revenue shortfalls and budget deficits from the COVID-19 crisis. To close deficits, they will need to raise taxes, cut spending to critical public programs like Medicaid, or both. GOALS: Examine the long-term benefits of Medicaid coverage of children and pregnant women, and the likely impact of state Medicaid cuts for the short and long term. METHODS: Review of research literature on the long-term benefits of Medicaid coverage of children and pregnant women. KEY FINDINGS: Research shows Medicaid coverage of children and pregnant women is associated with improved health and lower rates of disability in adulthood. Medicaid coverage is also associated with higher educational attainment and greater financial security. Some studies find that Black children particularly benefit. Medicaid also produces financial benefits for society and a strong return on government investment. CONCLUSIONS: Because state and federal policymakers tend to focus more on short-term budget windows, they do not always consider long-term consequences. In addition to further temporary boosts in federal Medicaid funding, one potential policy solution is an automatic federal funding increase to avert Medicaid budget cuts during future economic downturns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ISSUE: Preliminary data predict an increase in mental health needs in the U.S. population because of the COVID-19 pandemic and its socioeconomic consequences. Patients with chronic medical conditions are especially at risk for behavioral health conditions and poorer outcomes. Integrated behavioral health and primary care can improve these patients' clinical outcomes. GOAL: To describe how practices are successfully implementing and advancing integrated care. METHODS: A literature review identified 20 primary care practices that deliver high-quality integrated care. Findings from surveys, site visits, and semistructured telephone interviews were then analyzed. KEY FINDINGS: Financing, health information technology (HIT), and workforce challenges were the top three barriers to advancing integrated care. Practice-level strategies to address barriers included: diversifying revenue streams, prioritizing HIT implementation, and revamping workforce recruitment, training, and retention. To advance and sustain these investments, practices desired greater alignment with state regulators and payers. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 has magnified how the advancement of HIT, including innovations in digital mental health, could increase access to integrated care and alleviate workforce shortages. While this research was conducted prior to the pandemic, the findings offer insights into how practices have been addressing some of the challenges of providing high-quality, integrated care. State and payer actions could bring successful practice-level integration strategies to scale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ISSUE: During the first three months of the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals faced significant financial and operating pressure due to their necessary response to the public health crisis. In addition to incurring increased expenses to prepare for and treat COVID-19 patients, hospitals lost revenue for care that was canceled, postponed, or forgone. The federal government has responded with emergency financial relief, but state and federal policymakers still struggle to understand the magnitude of the impact on hospitals because of limited data on hospital financial metrics during the pandemic. GOAL: To understand the impact of COVID-19 on hospital utilization, revenue, and profitability. METHODS: Study of quarterly financial disclosures, earnings calls, and stock performance of the four largest publicly traded for-profit hospital systems. KEY FINDINGS: Admissions, surgeries, and emergency department visits of the four for-profit hospital systems dropped 20 percent to 40 percent during the last two weeks of March 2020 and 30 percent to 70 percent in April 2020. Their first quarter operating profits dropped 13.5 percent (though remained positive), and their market value dropped 52 percent from February 3 to March 18, 2020. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 affected hospital systems' revenue and profitability. The necessity of providing congressional relief to hospitals remains ambiguous and varies with individual systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Issue: Automatic enrollment is receiving increased policy attention as a means of achieving universal coverage. Auto-enrollment also could have eliminated insurance gaps that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it could face resistance from some Americans who would newly be expected to pay premiums. The approach also raises difficult design and implementation issues. Goal: Explore how two auto-enrollment strategies, one affecting all legal residents and another affecting a narrower low-income population, might work. Methods: Based on lessons learned from the Affordable Care Act and understanding of subsidized insurance programs, we explore design and implementation issues, such as how to deem enrollment, how to collect premiums, and which exemptions to permit. We also use the Urban Institute's Health Insurance Policy Simulation Model (HIPSM) to estimate coverage and cost implications of each approach. Key Findings and Conclusions: Both the comprehensive and limited approach to auto-enrollment would require the development of new administrative systems and enhanced marketplace subsidies to improve coverage affordability. Each approach would operate more simply if accompanied by a public insurance option. We conclude that the administrative and financing challenges related to auto-enrollment can be addressed and that a balance between public costs and sufficient political support could be identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article informs that historic impacts of pandemics on mining, and impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns, or curtailing of operations. Topics discussed include decline in the production of metal goods, the lead mining industry; number of incidents have been recorded that relate specifically to the effect the influenza had on the mining community; and the industry and the socio-economic impact, and is a worthwhile read as a comparative study for the current situation.

The article talks about the future of space-based healthcare and satellite in health care. It mentions that COVID-19 pandemic has pushed the acceleration of looking at the space-based health solutions due to physical distancing, and the fact that COVID-19 is highly contagious; and moving the healthcare industry toward a future of personalized medicine powered by explainable artificial intelligence (AI).