Pandemic, Inc.: Chasing the Capitalists and Thieves Who Got Rich While We Got Sick

The COVID-19 pandemic is still in recent memory. In the future there will be a complete accounting done of the successes and failures in the response. For now, we have books like Pandemic, Inc. that provide anecdotes of some of the big failures. 

Most of the focus is on masks and government procurement. Hospitals did not have nearly enough masks. An American manufacturer was begging for contracts to help ramp up production. Back in the Bush administration, efforts were made to have a robust government stockpile. However, the stockpile was curtailed during the Obama and Trump administrations.

There were ridiculous efforts made to procure masks at the start of the pandemic. China had cut off supplies. The government was willing to get a check to anybody that could provide masks quickly. Many people legitimately thought they could and set up businesses to do it. There were others that were just in it for a quick buck. Plenty of fraud abounded. How does the government balance immediate need with the need to weed out corruption?

The vaccine production also gets some coverage. There were some people that were fighting for years to develop the technology. The few companies that were ready at the outbreak of the pandemic made good money, but they did deliver. 

There is brief discussion of lockdowns and other political actions. The author is based in Texas, so the theater of the Texas governor gets some coverage. However, the disjointed political response would require another book.