5 Key Demands for the New Coronavirus Bill

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COVID-19 has left the economy and tatters in the last four weeks, 22 million people have filed for unemployment, putting millions of people on the brink of financial devastation. You have to have electricity. You have not a house. I have no money, no food. I am trapped and taken the lives of over 145,000 Americans. Congress has just days left to pass legislation that will keep struggling Americans afloat and stave off more economic catastrophe. Now, here are five key demands for that new bill. Number one, the most pressing task of this stimulus bill is to contain COVID-19. It's catastrophic rates of sickness and death, as well as tragic economic consequences require the boldest remedies. This country is capable of mustering. There will be no economic recovery until the virus is contained. Other nations among them Germany, South Korea and Italy have contained the pandemic with comprehensive testing, contact tracing and isolation.

The house of representatives wants to provide $75 billion for these measures. In addition to free access to coronavirus treatment and support for hospitals and other providers. This is the absolute minimum of what's needed. Number two, the bill must extend unemployment benefits to help people survive the worst economic crisis since the great depression, previous Corona virus relief legislation added $600 to weekly unemployment and extended coverage to gig workers and others not normally eligible, but these payments are about to end for roughly 25 million people. If they do, we can expect more human suffering and more joblessness because you see the extra purchasing power has helped sustain the economy. The payments should be continued at least through the end of the year as the house bill provides. Now, some say the extra unemployment benefits have discouraged recipients from seeking jobs. That's that's rubbish. Given the size of the economic collapse.

Few jobs are available anyway, and normal unemployment benefits typically pay a small fraction of the wages of jobs that were lost. So even with the extra benefits, working people have a strong economic incentive to return to work. Once COVID is contained. And these benefits expire not to mention it's good for the economy when people have extra money to spend to sustain remaining economic activity. And finally, it's beneficial to the public's health that as many people as possible avoid workplaces that pose any risk of infection, keeping people home to contain the virus is the only way we get the economy back on track. Number three, the bill must prevent a potential wave of evictions and foreclosures. 32% of households missed their July rent or mortgage payments. The bill must extend the federal eviction where a terrarium and provide assistance for renters and homeowners to pay rent, mortgages, utilities, and other related costs.

Substantial additional resources for housing assistance is a no brainer. Number four, the bill must shore up state and local budgets. State and local governments are facing huge budget shortfalls over the next three years without federal aid vital public services will be on the chopping block. Schools, childcare, supplemental nutrition, mental health services, low income housing, healthcare. You name it at a time when the public needs these services more than ever for public schools. The issue isn't so much whether to reopen, but how to do so in a way that doesn't risk the health of students, teachers, and other school personnel. This will require substantial additional resources. If we could afford to give corporations a $500 billion blank check and the last round of relief legislation, we can surely afford to help struggling state and local governments. The house bill provides nearly $1 trillion to state and local governments, which is minimally adequate.

Number five, don't compromise what's needed in the bill out of concern about the national debt. The real issue is the ratio of debt to the size of the economy. The government must spend large sums now to help the economy recover faster, thereby reducing the ratio of debt to the overall economy over the longer term, besides, as we learned during the great depression and world war II, large spending to reduce human suffering and promote economic wellbeing is well worth the cost. It's what almost every other nation is doing. None of this should be controversial. This bill is perhaps our only chance to get COVID-19 under control Americans fed and the economy back up and running, call your senators and demand. They fight to protect the American people. The window to act is closing. So please raise your voice now.