As the nation goes into the Easter holiday weekend, the country continues to face an economy that is generally closed. When will the US economy open back up? Initial hopes from the White House were to open by Easter weekend. Then President Trump extended the social distancing guidelines.
Recent reports are that President Trump and administration officials would like to open the US economy in May. In a recent interview, Surgeon General Jerome Adams said that the opening of the economy would be based on data in a place by place scenario. But many administration officials are pushing for a May opening. President Trump has stated he will not consider opening the economy until he knows the country will be healthy.
CNN reports that President Trump is on the verge of announcing a task force focused on opening the US economy. Many key figures are pushing for an opening of the economy in May, like Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. He told CNBC Thursday that he believed much of the economy could open in May. As the attention turns to May, how might the opening of the economy look?
As the Surgeon General explained, many states may be able to open back up in May given that cases continue to decline. There’s also a big push for better social tracing measures for potential exposures. Much of this has been accomplished through workers on the ground, but now the move may go high tech.
On Friday, Apple and Google announced a joint venture to help track the spread of coronavirus through their apps. The new app will help public health workers as they attempt to track contacts of infected persons. The app may be promising, but how will Americans feel about being tracked by cell phone apps?
Another idea talked about to help open the US economy is immunity cards. The card would be a certificate of immunity according to Dr. Fauci in his comments on Friday. The key to opening the United States does not lie in app tracking or in immunity cards, however.
As officials look to open the government, they are going to focus closely on data from antibody testing. Antibody testing has already begun in California. Many believe widespread testing is just days away across the country. This testing will allow officials to know more about the spread of coronavirus.
Details are just a couple short weeks away from the initial trials in California. Other countries are looking at similar testing processes. In the UK, there are finger prick home testing kits that will be marketed in coming weeks.
Antibody testing in coordination with coronavirus testing that is already occurring will be key data points. If the testing finds a majority of Americans have been exposed, the Trump administration will push aggressively to reopen in May.
Other key data points are also encouraging. In NY, Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the first reduction in the ICU admission rate. If this trend continues, the news is very encouraging. New York is the hardest hit state in the US, accounting for more cases in NY than any other country in the world.
While there is no definite date for opening, the economy will take some time to recover. Millions of Americans have filed for unemployment. The economy is certainly not a light switch that will improve immediately. While there’s no official timeline, I still expect Trump to open most of the US in May. The longer the crisis in the economy lingers, the more it will hurt him in November.
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