In the week since we published our overview of the healthcare industry’s counter attack on Covid-19, the situation has escalated rapidly - cases have accelerated and global governments have taken a tougher stance. Meanwhile, scientists' understanding of the disease continues to expand, giving pharma companies more ammunition as they mount a fightback.
We have therefore decided to update our overview of the situation, in an article which you can read here.
On 31 December 2019, scientists identified a strain of virus that had never been seen in humans before. The months that followed this discovery have been dominated by images of an approaching apocalypse: empty streets in some of the world’s biggest cities, stranded cruise-ships, supermarket shelves swept of essential items and long-life goods, and strictly enforced fines for breaking curfew in locked-down cities.
Coronavirus has come to dominate news cycles, social media and conversation. It has informed economic decisions, including the biggest interest rate cut in the US since the 2008 financial crisis. It is, inevitably, starting to be used as a political tool. But ultimately this is a human health issue, one that is not being helped by political distractions and mass hysteria.