Coronavirus and its Consequences

Think Global Health is monitoring the unfolding coronavirus outbreak and its economic and social consequences. We will be updating our home page frequently with new stories and report on new developments as they occur.

A tourist takes a picture of an image of Mona Lisa with a protective face mask after further cases of coronavirus were confirmed in Barcelona, Spain on March 6, 2020. The photo shows a man with dark hair and a black cap taking a cell phone photo of a likeness of Da Vinci's most famous painting with Mona wearing a mask. REUTERS/Nacho Doce

Much at Stake as EU Battles COVID-19

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Does Europe have the will to unite as one and protect global health around the world, or will national politics prevail?

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting in Moscow on preventing the spread of coronavirus in Russia on January 29, 2020. The picture shows Putin sitting in a chair listening. REUTERS/Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin photo

Russia’s Not Ready for Coronavirus

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Notwithstanding vigorous containment efforts and typical bluster, Russia faces a reckoning if COVID-19 cannot be stopped

Anticipating Coronavirus in West Africa

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Interview with Nigeria CDC leader Chikwe Ihekweazu on outbreak detection, preparedness, response, and COVID-19 in Africa

Picture shows a young boy carrying a backpack and wearing a school uniform standing in front of a brightly-colored building. A well-dressed woman directs him while a well-dressed man kneels and points a high-tech thermometer at his head to take his temperature.

How to Save Lives in a COVID-19 Pandemic

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Global preparedness is critical to saving lives and sparing health, societal, and economic impacts—now and in the future

Image shows a graph with severity versus transmissibility and several pandemics plotted.

Africa is not Starting from Scratch on COVID-19

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Success against coronavirus will require national leadership, engaged local responders, and strong cooperation with NGOs

Average level of preparation of the health system capacities for responding to an infectious epidemic, as measured by Joint External Evaluations of national progress in meeting targets of the International Health Regulations. Photo shows a map of Africa with different countries colored one of four colors according to the data. GIDA/Georgetown Infectious Disease Atlas

Coronavirus in Iran—An Isolated Response?

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As the COVID-19 crisis deepens, will Tehran wean itself off suspicions and collaborate in efforts to control the virus?

A man looks at parliamentary election campaign posters in Tehran, Iran on February 19, 2020. The photo shows the man standing in front of a board that is placarded with multiple political campaign posters, many of them identical and pasted over and over. The predominant colors are green, white, and red—like the Iranian flag. WANA/Nazanin Tabatabaee via REUTERS.

Why is Southeast Asia Responding Differently to COVID-19?

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Fundamental differences and objectives between nation states in Southeast Asia influence their responses to COVID-19

A Buddhist monk adjusts his protective face mask before a blessing ceremony for the people affected by the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, at a temple in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on February 22, 2020. This is a striking image with the monk in the foreground and some very colourful Buddhist temple features in the background. REUTERS/Lim Huey Teng

Coronavirus and the World Economy

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A pandemic longer than a year may lead to business failures, mass unemployment, and a world thrown into global recession

A woman wearing a mask to prevent the coronavirus is reflected in mirrors in Seoul, South Korea on February 24, 2020. This is an amazing image of a woman walking by a display of spherical mirrors, the sort of which someone might place on a corner to see a wide angle. She is wearing a black face mask and is reflected in all the mirrors. REUTERS/Heo Ran

Gender and the Coronavirus Outbreak

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Gender inequities make outbreaks worse, so why not integrate gender analysis into the response now to help save lives?

Immigration officers wearing protective awaiting Thai nationals evacuated from Wuhan, China—the center of the coronavirus epidemic, at the U-Tapao airport in Rayong province, Thailand on Feb 4, 2020. REUTERS/Royal Thai Navy Handout.

Travel Restrictions on China due to COVID-19

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A new global tracker mapping the impact of the new coronavirus on movement around the world

The image is a map of the world showing different countries colored different hues based on four levels of travel restrictions.

UPDATED: Timeline of the Coronavirus

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A frequently updated tracker of emerging developments from the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic

Photo shows a gloved hand holding a test tube labeled, “2019 nCoV” with two boxes ,marked “Positive” and “Negative.” The positive box is checked.

Waging Another Public Health "War?"

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Overreliance on military language in global health risks missing more appropriate, effective and compassionate responses

Military officers wearing face masks stand outside Duomo cathedral in Milan, Italy on February 24, 2020. The cathedral was closed by authorities due to the coronavirus outbreak. The photo shows a soldier in full combat gear wearing a mask and holding a military-style assault rifle. In the distance is the iconic architectural tourist destination. REUTERS/Flavio Lo Scalzo

Panicky Responses to the Coronavirus are Dangerous—Here’s Why

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Fear of the virus may spread faster than the virus itself, a potential threat to health, liberty, trade, and the economy

Volunteers in protective suits disinfect a railway station in Changsha, Hunan province, China, February 4. The photo shows several people clad head-to-toe in protective suits fogging what is presumably a disinfectant in thick clouds. REUTERS/cnsphoto

What's Next for COVID-19?

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Containment of the coronavirus would make an enormous difference to health around the world. Is it still possible?

A colorized scanning electron microscope image of the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, also known as 2019-nCoV, which causes COVID-19. Image shows a colorful molecular world with a bunch of worm-like dendrites, presumably biological material like cells, and bright orange cluster of spheres in the middle of the image. NIAID-RML image

Will “Mysterious” Virus Soon be Named?

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The WHO is forming a committee to pick an official name for 2019-nCoV, the new coronavirus—but what do we do until then?

A tourist wearing a mask visits Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China January 22, 2020. The photo shows a woman in a black mask in the foreground with a huge portrait of Chairman Mao visible in the background, along with a uniformed officer standing guard. REUTERS/Jason Lee

The Politics of the Coronavirus Outbreak

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Why are outbreaks common in Asia, and what political choices can governments make to reduce risk of infectious diseases?

Medical staff transfer a patient of a highly suspected case of a new coronavirus at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Hong Kong on January 22, 2020. Picture shows a patient on a wheeled bed surrounded by four health care providers moving him with another caregiver walking in front. They all are covered head-to-toe in blue protective gear. REUTERS/cnsphoto

Dr. Tom Frieden on the Politics of Epidemics

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Health protection can fight disease, reduce economic losses, and save lives

Photo shows a digital rendering of the 2019-nCoV virion.

Coronavirus—Unknown Source, Unrecognized Spread, and Pandemic Potential

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With novel coronavirus expected to become pandemic, it’s past time to prioritize Africa where cases are likely occurring

A security guard stands at attention at a hotel near Algiers, Algeria on Feb 4, 2020—where people evacuated from the Wuhan area in China are quarantined as a preventive measure because of coronavirus. Photo shows a guard wearing a face mask. REUTERS/Ramzi Boudina

Coronavirus and the Cruel Cost of Closing Borders

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Travel bans rarely prevent disease spread, but they have negative consequences—and may violate international health law

Nepalese police officers and other officials walking inside the Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu after Nepal confirmed the first case of coronavirus in the country on January 28, 2020. The picture shows three officers in full uniforms and two officials wearing suits walking toward the camera down a long air terminal corridor with windows on both sides. REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar.

Why Global Governance of Disease Matters for the Emergence of a Novel Coronavirus

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As WHO manages outbreak, how can we strengthen global governance tools and ensure existing systems fit an evolving world

A mother and her child wear a mask to prevent contacting a new coronavirus in Seoul, South Korea, January 26, 2020. The photo shows the two face to face with each other, but their faces are covered almost completely below their eyes by the dust masks. REUTERS/Yonhap

The Market, the Clinic, the Lung, and the Lab

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An interview with University of Iowa expert Stanley Perlman on what we know and what we don’t about the new coronavirus

Zhang Changchun shows a lung CT of his mother—53-year old Yang Zhongyi—a suspected case of coronavirus in Wuhan, China on Jan. 25, 2020. The case was unconfirmed at the time of the photo, said her son. The photo shows a hand holding a blue-tinted piece of X-ray film with lots of images of sections of lung scanned by the CT instrument. REUTERS/Zhang Changchun Handout.