In 2022, 37% of high school students who graduated took the ACT college readiness exam, a decline from 52% in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic. Among this select group of students, 22% met the exam's college readiness benchmarks in all four subjects. By racial group, the portion of ACT test-takers who met the benchmarks in at least three subjects ranged from 51% for Asians (down from 62% in 2019) to 5% for African Americans (down from 11% in 2019). This and other evidence indicates that government reactions to Covid-19 have caused major declines in educational attainment. For example, a study published in 2020 by the journal JAMA Network Open estimated that decisions to close U.S. elementary schools will ultimately shorten the lives of children aged 5-11 by 2.5-42.1 million years due to the effects of "decreased educational attainment."