New York, May 21: More than 35,000 lives would have been saved in the US if social distancing measures had begun just a week earlier than they actually did in mid-March, according to a new estimate by researchers at Columbia University.

They said simulations based on several models showed that 61 percent of the US cases of infection as of May 3 -- more than 700,000 -- and 55 percent of the more than 65,000 recorded deaths could have been averted if social distancing and other safety measures had been in place a week earlier. US Births Hit 35-Year Low, Part of Larger ‘Baby Bust’.

These researchers said the simulations illustrate the danger of easing lockdown measures too early, as many experts have noted. All 50 US states have begun to reopen, to one extent or another and with encouragement from President Donald Trump, to try to resurrect economies devastated by business closures and layoffs in the pandemic.

"Efforts to further raise public awareness of the ongoing high transmissibility and explosive growth potential of COVID-19 are still needed at this critical time," the researchers wrote.

"Our results also indicate that without sufficient broader testing and contact tracing capacity, the long lag between infection acquisition and case confirmation masks the rebound and exponential growth of COVID-19 until it is well underway," they said.

Ten days ago, a New York documentary filmmaker named Eugene Jarecki set up a billboard in Times Square with what he calls the "Trump Death Clock." It gives the number of deaths that Jarecki says could have been avoided if Trump had encouraged social distancing practices on March 9, rather than on March 16.

His figures are higher than those of the Columbia researchers because Jarecki argues that 60 percent of US deaths could have been averted by acting a week earlier. Trump Administration Announces Plans to Exit Open Skies Treaty, Says Russia is Violating Pact.

The United States is the country hardest hit by the pandemic, with more than 1.5 million cases of infection and more than 93,000 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 21, 2020 11:07 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).