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COVID-19 and the U.S. Fiscal Imbalance

Calculator with American Flag and Dollar Bills

Before COVID-19, the U.S. debt burden was large and on an unsustainable path. In a new paper, Cato scholar Jeffrey Miron looks at the fiscal impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the ensuing recession, and subsequent policy responses. Miron concludes that, in the long run, the pandemic will not dramatically alter the debt burden’s path. So rather than focusing on cutting spending for COVID-19 relief, Congress should focus on curbing the growth in mandatory entitlement spending.

Government in a Pandemic

US Capitol Building

Americans and their political leaders are understandably worried about COVID-19 and its effects, both on human health and the economy. That worry may lead some people to reflexively demand broad government intervention. But in a new paper, Cato scholar Thomas A. Firey argues that government can respond effectively to the historic COVID-19 crisis while following the principles of limited government.

Pandemics and Policy

Surgical mask with American flag print

The third great crisis of the 21st century has already inflicted a greater toll in lives lost and economic hardship than 9/11 and the 2008 financial collapse combined. And just as the COVID-19 pandemic has upended our daily lives, it has transformed the political landscape, with governments at all levels exercising emergency powers rarely seen outside the context of total war. With so much at risk, what’s needed now is sober, realistic assessment of the choices ahead—a guide to policies that can stem the damage while avoiding permanent transformation of American life and law. The Cato Institute aims to meet that need with its new series, Pandemics and Policy.

  • Read the Pandemics and Policy essays

Subtopics

  • COVID-19 and Foreign Policy
  • COVID-19 and Labor Regulation
  • Easing Regulatory Burden on Health Care
  • Economic Impact of COVID-19
  • Homeschooling & Education during COVID-19
  • Proper Role of Government in a Pandemic

Featured

Blog

Arizona, First in Occupational Licensing Reform, Now Poised to Become First in Telehealth Reform

By Jeffrey A. Singer.

Arizona’s leadership is not afraid to go first when it comes to licensing health care practitioners.

Blog

The Vaccine Allocation Mess In New York

By Ryan Bourne.

Bureaucratic prioritization and fines for decentralized decisions are causing havoc in New York City’s vaccine rollout.

Commentary

Ministers Must Speed up the Pace of Vaccination. Here Are Some Ways of Doing So.

By Ryan Bourne. Conservative Home.

Both the public health and economic consequences suggest we must do everything possible to speed up the vaccination process.

Blog

American Pharmaceutical Resilience

By Scott Lincicome.

The United States International Trade Commission’s report illustrates that the pharmaceutical supply chains have fared well so far through the COVID-19 pandemic, and there’s little evidence that government could improve them.

Blog

Telehealth in the Time of COVID-19

By Jeffrey Miron and Erin Partin.

States should strive to eliminate restrictions on telehealth, not impose new burdens.

Blog

Take Price Controls Off the Menu

By Jeffrey Miron and Erin Partin.

Introducing price controls will disincentivize delivery services from partnering with low‐​volume or remote restaurants, from increasing contractor pay, or from improving service.

Subtopics

  • COVID-19 and Foreign Policy
  • COVID-19 and Labor Regulation
  • Easing Regulatory Burden on Health Care
  • Economic Impact of COVID-19
  • Homeschooling & Education during COVID-19
  • Proper Role of Government in a Pandemic

Multimedia

Jeffrey A. Singer discusses president‐​elect Biden’s vaccine rollout plan on Sinclair Broadcasting Group’s The National Desk

Featuring Jeffrey A. Singer. January 11, 2021.

Neal McCluskey and Corey A. DeAngelis discuss education disparities during COVID-19 on the Eight Blackhands podcast

Featuring Neal McCluskey and Corey A. DeAngelis. January 10, 2021.

Veronique de Rugy discusses the latest stimulus bill and future stimulus bills on The John Batchelor Show

Featuring Veronique de Rugy. January 8, 2021.

Michael F. Cannon discusses the efficacy of masks on The Bob Harden Show

Featuring Michael F. Cannon. January 7, 2021.
More Multimedia

Events

Live Online Policy Forum

Defending Our Right to Test: How the FDA Restricts Direct‐​to‐​Consumer At‐​Home Testing

January 28, 2021 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM EST
Live Online

Featuring Nita A. Farahany, JD, PhD (@NitaFarahany), Robinson O. Everett Professor of Law, Professor of Philosophy, Duke Law School; Jessica Flanigan, PhD (@missjessica), Associate Professor of Leadership Studies and Philosophy, Politics, Economics, and Law, Richard L. Morrill Chair in Ethics and Democratic Values, University of Richmond; moderated by Jeffrey A. Singer, MD (@dr4liberty), Senior Fellow, Cato Institute.

Live Online Policy Forum

Digital Trade: Challenges and a Way Forward

December 15, 2020 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM EST
Live Online

Featuring Christine Bliss (@cblisscsi), President, Coalition of Services Industries; Stephanie Honey (@StephHoneyTrade), Consultant, Honey Consulting; and Hanna Norberg (@TradeEconomista), Founder, Trade Economista; moderated by Huan Zhu (@HZhu2013), Research Associate, Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies, Cato Institute.

Live Online Book Forum

Open: The Story of Human Progress

November 16, 2020 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM EST
Live Online

Featuring the author Johan Norberg (@johanknorberg), Senior Fellow, Cato Institute; with comments by Tom Palmer (@tomgpalmer), Executive Vice President for International Programs, Atlas Network; moderated by Chelsea Follett (@Chellivia), Policy Analyst, Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity, Cato Institute, and Managing Editor, www​.human​progress​.org.

Live Online Policy Forum

Right‐​Skilling Health Professionals: Replacing Government Licensing with Third‐​Party Certification

September 14, 2020 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM EDT
Live Online

Featuring Shirley Svorny, PhD, Professor of Economics, California State University–Northridge, and Adjunct Scholar, Cato Institute; William M. Sage, MD, JD, James R. Dougherty Chair for Faculty Excellence, University of Texas–Austin School of Law, and Professor of Surgery and Perioperative Care, Dell Medical School; moderated by Jeffrey A. Singer, MD (@dr4liberty), Senior Fellow, Cato Institute

More Events

Cato Studies

ftb-78-cover.jpg

An Unnecessary Proposal: A WTO Waiver of Intellectual Property Rights for COVID-19 Vaccines

James Bacchus.
December 16, 2020
Article title in foreground of a campus library

Higher Education after COVID-19

Vance Fried and Byron Schlomach.
December 9, 2020
pa905-cover.jpg

COVID-19 and the U.S. Fiscal Imbalance

Jeffrey Miron.
December 8, 2020
Article title in foreground of the US Federal Reserve building

Maintaining Distance between Monetary and Fiscal Policy

James A. Dorn.
November 18, 2020
More Cato Studies

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