Realistically how much would it cost to bail out these businesses and provide a safety net to people? I imagine the numbers are less than we'd first think.
It's a choice. It's not inevitable.
It starts with a concerted decision that lives are more important than money. If we can't get onboard with that, then there will always be people that put their well-being over others.
https://news.yale.edu/2002/05/23/rising-unemployment-causes-...
I'm not saying that death rate and unemployment are unrelated (equating lives and money together). I am saying that we should prioritize lives first, and figure out the money once we stop the damage.
However, let's start with the decision that lives are more important than money.
Practically speaking, the only thing a "working page person" (<60) could do is unknowingly spread the virus to someone else.
For these younger people their prospects are good if they receive that care. An overloaded health system may be unable to provide that care to everyone who won't survive without it, including some younger people.
A tremendous number of working people also have preconditions which are implicated for covid19 including hypertension and obesity.
If you are a younger person and carelessly get an avoidable infection and end up in an overloaded hospital needing intensive care, your life may well be saved due to being triaged ahead of an older person with worse prospects. But in that case your life would be saved at the expense of someone else's. ... someone else who's infection might also be due to your spreading. I wouldn't be okay with that, and I hope you're not either. So I hope your glib attitude doesn't mean that you're not taking avoidable risks.
In the US there hasn't yet been clearly established ethical guidance to direct triaging like that. Your local hospital may assign ICU care first come first served... if so mortality rates there for younger people won't look so good.
Hopefully 0 if we provide a robust social safety net for people who's livelihoods are harmed.
But there is nothing anyone can do to bring back our loved ones.
[1] https://edsource.org/2020/newsom-assures-districts-theyll-be...
[2] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/06/coronavirus-google-facebook-...
[3] https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/13/us/nba-player-donations-coron...