On March 12, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) classified the outbreak of the coronavirus, generally referred to as COVID-19, as a pandemic. The virus, which emerged from a seafood and poultry market in Wuhan, China, was first reported in December 2019. Since its discovery, the contagion has quickly spread throughout the world like a wildfire, killing roughly 38,000 people in its path. According to the most recent report from the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, over 200,000 Americans may be killed by the virus with millions being infected. In addition to the major human death toll, COVID-19 has crippled economies around the globe, as world leaders have enacted strictly mandated lockdowns in an effort to slow down its transmission.
Economic Global Catastrophe
The state of New York has been deemed the epicenter of the coronavirus in the United States. To halt the further dissemination of the virus within New York State, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo adopted several Executive Orders closing courthouses, public schools and most businesses, mandating social distancing, and banning “non-essential” travel. Only a few “essential” businesses are allowed to continue their operations during the government shut down, such as grocery stores and pharmacies.
