Lessons from The Coronavirus Economy

Wyatt Quillin

Mr. Roddy

IHSS
3 February 2021

Economy Blog

The Coronavirus pandemic and the quarantine it has caused has affected the economy greatly in the past year. We’ve had the biggest decline in gross domestic product last year since 1946. “the gross domestic product, which is the broadest measure of the economy’s output, fell by 3.5 percent in 2020” (Cassidy). When the COVID crisis was first starting, experts assumed that the economy would suffer greater consequences than it did, which is a comforting thought. They predicted that it would fall about 6.5 percent. The main reason that COVID’s effects on the economy weren’t that bad was because of the Cares Act that Congress passed in March 2020.  This act consisted of around 2.2 trillion dollars targeted towards financially vulnerable people and businesses. Heidi Shierholz, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute, said that around 26.8 million people were unemployed or have had drops in wages or hours. It was feared that COVID would cause an unstoppable nose dive in spending, which would effectively ruin the economy. Thankfully, the effects of COVID never reached the expectations of destruction it was given.

This article covers the struggles and fears of what would happen to the economy really well. It talks about how economists feared the worst at the beginning of the pandemic, and how the unemployment rate in America has increased. Personally, I think it is important to talk about the aids like the Cares Act and how they have helped the American people greatly. As a country, I don’t believe that we moved swiftly enough in the earlier months, and our economy and population suffered for it. Not only did countless small businesses have to close down, but employees of larger companies were laid off when they need the financial help the most. Consumer spending dropped exponentially once the pandemic started, but after most of the year had passed, it started to rise again. I think this is a good example of how not only businesses but also everyday citizens can adapt to unprecedented circumstances and do what is necessary to keep everything in order. Congress passed expansion in jobless benefits, stimulus checks were sent out, and America was trying its hardest to keep from suffering a massive economical fallout. This article sheds some light on the different ways legislation has been helping to improve the situation of the economy, and personally, I think that the economy will bounce back stronger than it was when we went into the pandemic. Another thing that gives some hope is the number of people vaccinated. In the article I read, it said about 22.9 million people in America have received the vaccine. It is a wonder that we got this vaccine out so quickly, even if it isn’t 100% effective. Of course, we have all felt the effects of the pandemic. Whether you are an adult or an adolescent, our worlds have changed massively. Education is completely different than it was when COVID started. Schools have the option to function online, which was never really a thing before. Sadly, some impoverished schools didn’t have the resources to give their students a full education. Thankfully, Congress has been working on more financial support to education systems across the country, which is another sign of better times ahead. America has definitely learned from the mistakes made in the past year and will better itself from this experience. 

 

Works Cited

Cassidy, John, et al. “The Three Biggest Lessons of the Coronavirus Economy.” The New Yorker, www.newyorker.com/news/our-columnists/the-three-biggest-lessons-of-the-coronavirus-economy.