How Coronavirus has Affected the Economy
When the COVID-19 outbreak began in Wuhan, few predicted that the virus would reach America. However, as international cases became more rampant, the US began to take more serious preventative measures, hoping to avoid what was seemingly becoming a pandemic. COVID-19 inevitably reached the US, beginning on the West Coast, and gradually expanding across the country. As of Wednesday Mar. 25, there were 60,000 confirmed cases in the US and over 800 deaths.
Many are blaming Trump for the economic downturn, and rightfully so. His team failed to follow the National Security Council’s playbook on fighting pandemics, which recommends that the government act quickly to detect possible outbreaks and invoke the Defense Production Act which produces goods and services for National Security purposes. Trump failed to follow step one of combatting a global pandemic. In a move of extremely poor judgement, he disbanded the pandemic team earlier in his term. His team even blamed China for not being informative enough about the coronavirus. Trump’s poor and delayed response of brushing off the threat of the virus has arguably contributed substantially to the state of the economy.
The economy is now declining rapidly due to rampant unemployment and salary reductions resulting from the mandatory quarantine placed on many Americans. Congress has already passed two smaller relief bills to address the coronavirus—an 8.3 billion dollar bill dedicated to supplement the healthcare system and a 100 billion dollar bill meant to increase paid sick leave and, most importantly, provide free testing. As more and more of the population becomes infected and stocks are plummeting faster, the Senate is now pushing through a $2.2 trillion bill that would attempt to stimulate the US economy by creating a loaning system for small businesses that are in danger of sinking, as well as sending checks to many Americans. The bill also directs $130 billion in funding to hospitals, and provides unemployment insurance for Americans. Another step the legislation takes is ensuring taxpayer-based loans cannot go to government employee controlled properties and that loans are provided to corporations, such as passenger airlines, who have been hit hard by the virus. Despite the urgency of the situation, Republican senators are still debating a provision that would supposedly incentivize companies to lay off workers instead of maintaining their salaries.
After the bill passes the Senate however, passage through the House of Representatives still appears precarious. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi gave an enthusiastic review of the proposed bill, but representatives are seeking an unanimous vote by voice, which ultimately may be difficult to attain. Well-known Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has already suggested an opposing stance. Additionally, the House is currently out of session; two of its members tested positive for coronavirus and many others are in quarantine, implicating a longer time frame for the bill to reach the American people. After the House’s deliberation and passage, Trump has stated that he will immediately sign the bill in order to salvage the economy as quickly as possible. In the meantime, Americans are continuing to live day to day in the midst of the unknown, and it is difficult to see what the aftermath of the COVID-19 outbreak will look like.
by PIA JAIN & ANGELIQUE PHAM