I believe there would have been more cases, but less long-term economic damage. JP Morgan is forecasting a 40% drop in GDP this quarter, and 20% unemployment by the end of April. If this policy continues, millions of families are going to lose everything they own, and our government will bankrupt itself trying to keep up appearances.
In the last recession, cancer rates went up, drug overdoses went up, suicides went up and businesses failed. I understand Trump's initial response to this crisis and support it, but now that we know we aren't going to run out of hospital beds, ventilators, and have found treatments for the Wuhan Virus it's time to start getting back to normal.
In my business, real estate, I'm feeling the pinch with renters deciding to just not pay and being unable to show empty apartments. I'm fortunate though, I've been in the business long enough that I'm not carrying a lot of debt. However, I know several people who aren't so lucky especially the small suppliers who provide specialized services and hardware. I suspect a fair number of them are going to be bankrupted if we don't get the economy opened up soon. Contrary to public opinion the vast majority of these people I know developed their businesses by working long hours, sacrificing a lot of simple pleasures and putting all their savings at risk with no guarantees. We need to save them as much as we need to save anyone who gets sick.
