Commentary
The dramatic shortage of baby formula underscores the point: A functioning economy is essential to public health. It’s the same with inflation and food shortages: if you cannot afford to eat or the shelves at the grocery are empty, that results in a diminution of public health. If products essential to life—parts to fix trucks or medical equipment—are unavailable due to supply-chain snarls caused by lockdowns, you have a public-health disaster brewing.
