The Consequences of Neoliberalism in the Current Pandemic

Abstract

This article analyzes how the neoliberal policies, such as the politics of austerity (with considerable cuts to social policy expenditures including medical care and public health services) and the privatization of health services, imposed by many governments on both sides of the North Atlantic, considerably weakened the capacity of the response to the coronavirus pandemic in Italy, Spain, and the United States.

Policy capacity, local autonomy, and human agency: tensions in the intergovernmental coordination in Indonesia’s social welfare response amid the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in late December 2019, the magnitude of impacts has been globally unprecedented and has both exacerbated as well as presented new problems and challenges for governments. The pandemic has drawn intense interest in governments and how they navigate the often-competing health and economic imperatives relative to the type of their political system (Hodge et al, 2020;Kavanagh & Singh, 2020;Navarro, 2020;Rozell & Wilcox, 2020;Thomson & Ip, 2020). Across many countries, the response to the pandemic by governments has pointed to tensions between health directives aimed at curbing the spread of the disease, such as restricting movement, partial or full lockdowns, and work-from-home directives; and the economic impacts of such measures, where there are also tensions between different political leaders and layers of government.…”

New technology and work: Exploring the challenges

“…Crisis brings into question the sustainability of the current global production and financial systems, as well as the capacity of neoliberalism and shareholder governance systems to anticipate and manage events linked to change and crisis (Navarro, 2020). The neoliberal agenda of hollowing out the public sector, eroding health and safety nets and the marketisation of health has meant that, in many countries, the health system has been incapable of responding to the pandemic and a large part of the population have been left without adequate health access (Navarro, 2020). There has been international interest in broader stakeholder participation systems, supported by reporting and funding mechanisms that consider global shared values, environmental sustainability and broad social objectives linked to the United Nation's (UN) development goals.…”

“…Environmental sustainability now poses a major challenge to the sustainability of current living standards. The COVID-19 international pandemic is the latest in a succession of regional and international crises that have afflicted national economies and the international economic order over the past 2 decades (Navarro, 2020; Quinlan, 2020). The pandemic has highlighted the fragility of global supply chains and production networks, just in time and lean production, free trade and global labour (Van Barneveld et al, 2020).…”

“…In this regard, government policies especially those linked to training and education, the support of research and development, the provision of infrastructure to support digital technology and integrated supply chains become crucial. The COVID pandemic highlighted the different abilities across countries to effectively support and coordinate effective responses (Navarro, 2020). Infrastructure support is required to deliver the internet and the sophisticated logistics are necessary to support global supply chains.…”

Collect and Treat Urban Wastewater to Fight the Pandemic Disease of COVID-19 Effectively

“…The coronavirus attack on the people of the world came as a surprise. The coronavirus emerged when states that were prioritizing public health care and providing more medical services gave way to governments with policies of austerity and privatization of enterprises [2], [3] and [4]. The coronavirus emerged when the world was proud of its scientific and medical advances in recent decades.…”