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The Grand Market Failure
Yesterday, I listened to WNYC’s Brian Lehreh show. There was a nurse working in emergency care pleading and petitioning for help. These medical professionals are out of supplies and they don’t even have enough masks to protect themselves!
We are effectively in a state of war against the new virus. There is a call for nationalizing the manufacturing of critical supplies. Can we leave the manufacturing of these supplies to the market, which is always based on profit motive? What did America do during the world wars?
The pathetic inadequacy of markets and private incentives is plain to see. I also understand that after the 2003 SARS outbreak, there was some research effort done by private companies. But it stopped quickly. There was no profit incentive. Why would a corporation care to develop a new vaccine, a new medicine, etc. if there is no immediate demand for it? We live in a market-based economy. Typically, the market does not look far enough ahead to anticipate distant but dire needs.
Pandemics and the emergence of life-threatening new diseases have become more and more frequent. This has been predicted by scientists a long time ago. It has much to do with urbanization, deforestation and the resulting loss of habitat of the wild animals. Yet, where is the effort to come up with measures to handle future outbreaks? We have seen precious little…
