In many cases, in order to remain in our normal living environment, it is enough to regularly or periodically take certain pharmacological drugs (for insomnia, for hypertension, Kamagra, etc.). But from time to time, mankind has to experience shocks from meeting with a new disease that poses a threat not only to health but also to the life of the population.
The modern generation has not been spared to such a disease. COVID-19 – a coronavirus infection, which was discovered in China at the end of last year – is very actively spreading around the planet. The danger of the disease is that people do not have acquired immunity to it, and people of all ages are susceptible to it. Some of them transmit the disease quite easily, but for others it is accompanied by severe complications, which often lead to death.
It is quite difficult to prevent the disease and resist it, while neither a vaccine nor drugs have been developed. Therefore, the only way out today is to prevent the spread of the disease, to protect the most vulnerable groups of the population from it – elderly people and those whose organism is weakened by other diseases. For this, it is necessary to limit social contacts as much as possible.
As it turned out, this task is not easy. Developed international relations and high social activity of citizens contribute to the rapid spread of infection. Many states are forced to take drastic measures, stopping the work of enterprises and urging citizens not to leave home without need.
The fight against coronavirus poses a new problem – economic. Workers remain unemployed, enterprises lose their income, the state treasury loses the planned income. In China, the first country to take the blow, for the first time in 30 years a decline in factory production was recorded. The following two main factors influenced the fall of the country’s economy:
- the need for strict measures to isolate citizens;
- reduced demand for products due to the impact of the virus outbreak on the global economy.
Most countries faced the problem of taking urgent measures to support the population and stabilize the economy. To solve it, all possible measures were involved:
- The United States. The president signed the law for allocating $100 billion to help people affected by the outbreak of coronavirus (more than 3 million people applied for unemployment benefits in the United States alone in a week). In addition, the Senate approved a list of measures to stimulate the economy, for which $2 trillion was allocated. The Federal Reserve is going to allocate another $4 trillion. The money will go to direct payments to citizens, to help businesses and hospitals.
- Brazil. It is planned to allocate $30 billion to support the economy, more than half of which will be allocated to support the most vulnerable segments of the population.
- Australia. The funds allocated under two programs for the adoption of economic measures (in total more than $50 billion) account for 10% of the country’s GDP.
- China. People’s Bank has allocated more than $170 billion for additional liquidity to the markets. To support enterprises, the People’s Bank also reduced interest rates on loans.
- Germany. €156 billion have been allocated to support citizens, businesses and medical institutions.
- The United Kingdom. The country allocated about €360 billion to support citizens and businesses, which makes up almost 15% of the country’s GDP. Those experiencing financial difficulties can take advantage of a mortgage vacation. For companies with no more than 250 employees, the state covers the cost of sick leave.
- Spain. More than €200 billion have been allocated for the fight against coronavirus and its consequences, which makes up 20% of the country’s GDP.
Other countries of the world have also developed measures to combat coronavirus and its consequences. All of them are aimed at supporting the population and business in the current conditions. The population, in turn, is required to maximize compliance with quarantine requirements. The sooner we deal with a dangerous infection, the less severe the consequences will be for the economy, and the faster we will overcome them.