The Economist reports that “the world economy probably shrank by 4.3% in 2020, a setback matched only by the Depression and the two world wars”. Cutler writes in JAMA that “the SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2) pandemic is the greatest threat to prosperity and well-being the US has encountered since the Great Depression… the estimated cumulative financial costs of the COVID-19 pandemic related to the lost output and health reduction are shown in the. The total cost is estimated at more than $16 trillion, or approximately 90% of the annual gross domestic product of the US”.