Is the time finally here for universal basic income?

In the last few weeks, calls for a universal basic income have been louder than ever. The US, too, sends checks to most citizens. And rightly so – the pandemic of coronavirus calls for radical action.

14 countries around the world are experimenting with direct payments to compensate for the financial consequences of COVID.

Once a radical idea on the fringes of mainstream economics, giving money to citizens in the United States and Britain has been used as a way of protecting vulnerable people's livelihoods as the coronavirus crisis accelerates.
Universal Basic Income (UBI) involves providing citizens with cash payments each month to spend as they see fit, often in addition to welfare benefits that tend to be linked to specific needs, such as housing or childcare.
Advocates say that its simplicity allows governments to bypass time-consuming bureaucratic processes, while giving beneficiaries the assurance that they will have some income even if their circumstances change.

Since the coronavirus outbreak and the subsequent social and economic lock-up, there have been numerous appeals from economists, journalists, public figures and policy makers that the time has come for universal basic income to be implemented. However, the media and the public debate on the imminent need for universal basic income do not respond to the measures currently under discussion to address the economic crisis stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.

Google-parent Alphabet pledging $800 million in response to the coronavirus crisis

On Friday, Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai said Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) would donate over $800 million in funds to manufacture medical supplies used to counter COVID-19 and in ad credits to government and health organizations and businesses.

The company is collaborating with Magid Glove and Protection to manufacture 2 million to 3 million face masks and will financially help efforts to improve manufacturing potential for life-saving medical devices and personal protective equipment, Pichai said.

The massive epidemic, which killed nearly thousands of people worldwide, has overwhelmed healthcare systems around the world and contributed to a shortage of medical equipment, including face masks and ventilators.

The company will offer $340 million in Google Ad Credits to small and medium-sized companies operating on its website, and $250 million in Ad Grants to the World Health Organization and other government agencies, Pichai said in a blog post.

Source: https://in.reuters.com/article/uk-health-coronavirus-alphabet/google-parent-alphabet-to-donate-800-million-in-response-to-coronavirus-crisis-idINKBN21F05J

Italians share messages warning others about coronavirus impacts

'Much worse than you thought': Italians share messages warning others about coronavirus impacts

Italy has been particularly hard hit, with the large number of deaths.

The videos came from hundreds of Italians across the country as they watched a nationwide lockdown, but the message for other countries was the same: don't underestimate this.
Italy has been particularly hard hit by the novel coronavirus pandemic, with more than 35,000 confirmed cases and the second-highest number of fatalities behind China. The freelance filmmaker Olmo Parenti had in mind those astounding numbers when he collected messages from Italians to warn those in other countries what they could face if they weren't serious about self-isolating and social distancing.

Parenti said he wanted to record messages to people in the U.S., England, and France, fearing that people would not take the pandemic as seriously as they should.
"We were acting the same way until nine, ten days ago," said Parenti, who lives in Milan. "We were going outside to say, 'It's just a flu. We get it ... why should we worry about it?' But the thing is, we didn't realize how little we know about it." "We make assumptions that not only put us at risk, but others at risk," Parenti said.

Working with the film collective "A Thing By," Parenti was given hundreds of videos for the project. He said that he edited the whole thing in one night to get the message out as quickly as possible.
"What's going on is a lot worse than you thought it was," said Paola Costa in her message. "You will realize that even being able to breathe air in your own house is something you should be thankful for." A woman who works at a hospital in Italy said that she is now working "deadly shifts."

World Bank Group Initiates First Operations for COVID-19

World Bank Group Initiates First Operations for COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Emergency Health Assistance, Enhancing Developing Country Responses

The Board of Executive Directors of the World Bank today approved a first package of emergency relief operations for developing countries around the world using a dedicated, fast-track COVID-19 (coronavirus) response system. The first group of ventures, worth $1.9 billion, will support 25 countries, and the fast-track mechanism will be used to push forward new operations in over 40 nations. However, the World Bank is working worldwide to redeploy capital in existing World Bank supported projects worth up to $1.7 billion, including by consolidation, use of emergency components of established projects (CERCs) and activating CAT DDOs and spanning each area.

In the next 15 months, the World Bank Group is prepared to mobilize up to $160 billion to finance COVID-19 initiatives that will help countries adapt to the pandemic's immediate health effects and accelerate economic recovery. The wider economic policy aims at shortening recovery time, creating opportunities for development, promoting small and medium-sized enterprises and helping to protect the poor and vulnerable. Such operations will concentrate on high deprivation, with a emphasis on policy-based funding, and protecting the poorest households and the environment.

The World Bank also helps countries access desperately needed medical supplies by reaching out to manufacturers on behalf of governments, in response to severe supply chain disruptions. The World Bank also encourages others to provide financial support for COVID-19 health response in developing countries.

Source: https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2020/04/02/world-bank-group-launches-first-operations-for-covid-19-coronavirus-emergency-health-support-strengthening-developing-country-responses
 

No sign of coronavirus? Here's why you could still carry it (and spread it)

Studies show that carriers with moderate or no symptoms are a key component of COVID-19 spread...
One of the main issues surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak is the speed with which the virus spreads. Although much of the emphasis has been on isolating patients with symptoms of active disease, a number of recent studies indicate that carriers with mild or no symptoms may help spread the virus.
We know that up to 80% of COVID-19 cases have moderate symptoms. Complicating matters, pulmonologist Joseph Khabbaza, MD, says that signs can not be apparent for up to two weeks. And since these non-specific symptoms (fever, sore throat, cough, diarrhea) that represent other more common illnesses such as flu or cold, many of those infected — especially early in the outbreak — did not know they were carrying the virus.
One research looked back at the initial spread in China and found that people who had contracted the virus but had mild symptoms helped accelerate the spread.
The research used a mathematical model to predict the initial distribution of COVID-19 through hundreds of cities in China. Researchers found that 86% of infections had occurred in the U.S. prior to January 23, 2020. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) gave a Level 3 travel warning to Wuhan, China, which was unidentified.
Since so many of these unidentified cases displayed mild or even no signs, the study reported that such carriers were at risk of "exposing a far larger portion of the population to virus than would otherwise have occurred." The study also concluded that "unidentified infections were the source of infection for 79% of recorded cases."
The research from Japan highlights the number of carriers of COVID-19 that have no symptoms. One was on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, which was put under quarantine in Japan at the beginning of February 2020 when a former passenger tested positive for the virus was discovered.
The study found that 634 of the 3,063 tests given to quarantine passengers returned positive. It is estimated that about 17.9 percent of these successful patients have no symptoms.
Such findings, says Dr. Khabbaza, highlight the value of following instructions from government and medical agencies on security measures such as quarantine and social distancing. Because so many carriers have little to no symptoms, it is difficult to determine how many people actually carry the virus. This fact makes preventive action all the more necessary.
Since the virus can become airborne through respiratory droplets when an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks near you (within six feet) and can move by person-to-person contact, social isolation from others, irrespective of symptoms, will help break the chain of transmission.