Pandemics, Panic, and the Global Economy

What Don and I have concluded is that the economic and societal

effects of a pandemic, even a moderate one, are so severe that businesses

and consumers need to join the medical and scientific community in

creating a crisis prevention and management plan.

Investors and business leaders must be aware of the risks and factor them into their strategic

planning. As the story moves to the front pages and headlines of

news broadcasts, panic might well ensue. If this is real, waiting for the

spread of disease from human to human will be too late.

If nothing else, we hope to raise the consciousness of citizens around the

world in an effort to support the urgent endeavors of the public health

and medical professionals.

Governments must take the lead in providing funding to all regions of the world, particularly the poorest nations of Asia. In today’s world, the economy is borderless and so are public health and terrorism risks. Forget the ‘each-man-for-himself’ psychology of protectionist and anti-globalization rhetoric. Like it or not, we are all in this together, and we are all dragged downward by the weakest links.