It is imperative therefore to take a clear-eyed look at the state of the union before the virus hit and create remedies that both address short-term needs and strengthen the foundation of our economy, health care system, and social safety net—so that we’re ready for the next crisis.

As the federal government prepares to deploy additional aid packages, this webinar will explore the overall economic context in the US as the pandemic hit and how current measures have done. What are the gaps? The failures? The successes? How does the US’s response compare to those of other advanced countries? It will also examine the priorities the US must focus on in its continued response. Failing to act comprehensively will harm health, impede recovery, and slow long-term growth; it will mean that the country could emerge with even more inequality than the unacceptable levels we had before the crisis; unless further actions are taken, the dangers of long- term debt and bankruptcy spirals are very real.

About the Speaker: Joseph E. Stiglitz is University Professor at Columbia University, the winner of the 2001 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics, and Co-Chair of INET’s Commission on Global Economic Transformation. He was chairman of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisors under President Clinton and chief economist and senior vice president of the World Bank for 1997-2000. Stiglitz received the John Bates Clark Medal, and has held the Drummond Professorship at All Souls College Oxford, and taught at M.I.T, Yale, Stanford, and Princeton.