The COVID-19 pandemic and coronavirus-fueled preventive measures are more dangerous for individuals with low income, Bruegel, a European research institute located in Brussels, said on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st March, 2020) The COVID-19 pandemic and coronavirus-fueled preventive measures are more dangerous for individuals with low income, Bruegel, a European research institute located in Brussels, said on Tuesday.
"They [low-income population] are more exposed to health risks because they work in critical sectors. They are less likely to be able to work remotely, putting their incomes and jobs at higher risk ... Finally, they have smaller savings (if at all), giving them smaller buffers. COVID-19 is laying bare different types of interrelated inequality and policymakers, during and after the emergency, should incorporate the understanding of these mechanisms into their policy response," Bruegel said.
According to the research institute, poorer neighborhoods also pose greater health risks to people living there as they are more densely populated.
Workers of the informal economy also could face serious challenges due to the pandemic, Bruegel said, adding that the informal economy was big in countries like Italy.
