Increasing PCR testing reduced COVID-19 cases and deaths, and it was the most important predictor of how well countries contained the pandemic. The study also found that lockdowns did not slow the virus in most countries, and that masks and school closures had less impact than high levels of testing and isolation.

The Sri Lanka case of the World Bank study was carried out by the Institute for Health Policy, and published together with the other country cases in “Good Practices in Health Financing: Lessons from reforms in low- and middle-income countries”.