The Next Pandemic

Covid has killed more than 5 million people globally, but the next pandemic could be far worse

• The toll of the Covid-19 pandemic is almost too horribly vast to quantify. Beyond the untold economic loss and social strain, more than 5 million people around the world have died thus far.
• But previous pandemics have been worse. The “Spanish flu” pandemic a century ago killed more than 50 million people at a time when the global population was far smaller.
• Future pandemics are also likely to be far worse than the current pandemic. In fact, scientists believe the risk of severe outbreaks is rapidly growing due to a variety of factors.
• Those factors include population growth, environmental degradation, and the interconnectedness of a globalized world.
• This all raises a critical question: Are we now better prepared for the next pandemic? In our reading today, we explore various perspectives.