Sen. Johnson: As we learn more about the coronavirus, try to put things into perspective

[Geee]

USA Today

I’m not aware of any public official, including President Donald Trump, who is calling for a complete opening of the U.S. economy.

What more people are saying is that as we learn more about COVID-19, we should evaluate the total societal cost of this awful disease and try to put things into perspective.

Each year, approximately 48,000 Americans commit suicide and an estimated 67,000 die of a drug overdose. That level of individual despair has occurred in a strong economy with near-record low levels of unemployment in virtually every demographic.

Imagine the potential psychological and human toll if this shutdown continues indefinitely, unemployment reaches 20% or higher, as some now predict, and we sink into a deep recession or depression.

The U.S. Senate just passed a $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill in a less-than-perfect attempt to mitigate some of the economic fallout.