Abstract
The coronavirus pandemic is bringing with it the prospect of severe financial and economic crises. The article investigates its economic consequences in terms of financial instability, economic recession, lower incomes and policy challenges at the national and European levels. What are some of the lessons that can be learned? This article argues that health is a global public good. Public health and welfare systems are crucial alternatives to the market and universal public health is a key element of an egalitarian policy.
Highlights
The coronavirus pandemic is a major health emergency.1 As of 27 March, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported over 500,000 cases and more than 24,000 deaths worldwide
There has not been a specific factor that could replicate the role that the collapse of ‘subprime’ mortgages and the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers played in 2007 and 2008 leading to a 50% fall of the US Stock Exchange. This time, the slowdown of the economy could make the mass of private debt unpayable; according to the OECD, world private corporations have an outstanding debt of 13.5 trillion US dollars (Goodman, 2020), after a decade of huge debt expansion, made easier by interest rates close to zero
Pressed by the spreading of the pandemic and a risk of a severe recession in the US, the Trump administration has planned to launch with dangerous delays and strong divisions in Congress – a nearly 2 trillion dollar plan to shore up the economy
Summary
The coronavirus pandemic is bringing with it the prospect of severe financial and economic crises. The article investigates its economic consequences in terms of financial instability, economic recession, lower incomes and policy challenges at the national and European levels. The coronavirus pandemic is a major health emergency.. In China, where the virus started, the infection seems to have stopped after reaching 81,000 cases; in Italy – the second most affected country with over 80,000 confirmed cases on 26 March – the pandemic has not yet slowed. The pandemic is bringing with it a major economic and financial crisis. Facing the economic consequences of coronavirus is a major challenge for national governments, European institutions and the international system. The nature of the health, social and economic problems we face as well as to update the policies that have led to this crisis
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