The U.S. and global surge in COVID-19 cases has shattered the fantastical thinking about the coronavirus that, for a moment, ruled the day.

At Public Citizen, we never had any illusions.

From the very start of the pandemic, we recognized that the coronavirus would be the defining issue for global health, the economy, our politics, our communities and society at large.

As we have been for months now, we are continuing to be a leader of multi-organization, nationwide campaigns that are working around the clock to:
Read on for more.

Fighting Vaccine Apartheid

Let’s start with the basics.

Once we have a vaccine, who gets it, and when?

What if a single company is permitted to maintain exclusive rights to manufacture a vaccine — through patents, exclusive marketing rights, trade secrets or otherwise?

If that happens, that company will have the power to impose charges that could put the vaccine out of reach for millions in the United States and billions worldwide.

And, even worse, that company will not, on its own, be able to produce nearly enough to meet global demand.

Against monopoly and scarcity, we’re advocating for models of vaccine development and manufacturing that rely on information sharing, cooperation, nonexclusive licensing and global solidarity.

Our cutting-edge research is documenting the public investment in all coronavirus-related therapies. We’re helping conceptualize and driving support for legislative solutions. And we’re helping coordinate a global advocacy network to make sure a vaccine is available, immediately, all around the world.

Expanding Health Coverage

Imagine this: During a global pandemic, the U.S. health insurance system has stripped coverage from 10 million or more Americans.

It’s hard to imagine a worse indictment of our health care system.

While continuing our long-term work for Medicare for All, we are partnering with Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and others for immediate solutions, including providing Medicare coverage to all the newly unemployed.

We are also pressuring health insurers to make sure they make good on their commitments to cover coronavirus-related care without making patients pay.

Our reports and campaigns have prodded insurers to provide free coronavirus care to their members and to extend their commitments to do so until the pandemic ends.

Instituting Oversight and Accountability

It was a good thing that Congress agreed to rush trillions of dollars in support for newly unemployed people and businesses hurt by the pandemic.

It was not a good thing that Congress failed to impose any meaningful accountability on businesses receiving subsidies.

Our pressure for accountability helped lead to the inclusion of a few mechanisms in the bailout legislation, but much more is needed.

Missing from the legislation or the Federal Reserve lending programs are obligations to keep workers on the payroll (except for the small business-focused Paycheck Protection Program), to prohibit stock buybacks or dividend payments, to control excessive CEO and executive compensation, and more.

We are now pushing for more robust accountability measures in upcoming legislation — such as imposing much more transparency on the bailout programs, giving real teeth to oversight panels and protecting whistleblowers.

We’re doing our own investigations, as well, which you’ll be hearing much more about in the weeks ahead.

Opposing Regulatory Rollbacks

The Trump administration is using the pandemic to justify even more regulatory rollbacks and to stop enforcing health, safety, environmental and other rules on the books.

They claim that health and environmental regulations will slow the economic recovery. (Actually, it’s the opposite: Failing to ensure worker and consumer health and safety will leave people too scared to re-engage with the economy.)

We’re fighting back against the administration’s policies to stop enforcing rules. And we’re suing to stop deregulatory moves, including:
Blocking Corporate Immunity

At the very same time that regulatory enforcement is at an all-time low, Big Business and Mitch McConnell are arguing that corporations should be immune from coronavirus-related lawsuits.

This sweeping proposal could cover everything from workplace lawsuits to civil rights claims, from environmental cases to consumers suing over being unduly exposed to the coronavirus.

If Big Business gets immunity, in whole or in part, we will all be much less safe.

Removing the threat of liability will invite corporations to engage in irresponsible behavior.

It’s a near certainty that, as a result, more people will get sick and die.

To make sure that doesn’t happen, we’re issuing cutting-edge research reports, educating the media, building broad coalitions, mobilizing the public and lobbying (virtually) on Capitol Hill.

No way can we let Big Business exploit the pandemic to make us sicker.

Defending Voting Rights

We recognized from the outset of the pandemic that voting in person would be difficult or impossible in much or all of the country.

Now we have primary election debacles in Wisconsin, Georgia and elsewhere to prove the point.

That’s why winning robust vote-by-mail systems — along with early voting and other measures to ensure an orderly November election and stop voter suppression — is our immediate democracy priority.

With allies, we are driving the demand for $3.6 billion in federal funding for state and local election boards to move quickly to make it easy for everyone to vote by mail. This work includes grassroots organizing in swing states with Republican senators who we aim to persuade to support the needed funding.

We are also working in states to push them to adopt the most vote-by-mail-friendly systems possible.

You don’t have to think too hard to envision truly catastrophic scenarios for November, with Donald Trump citing election mishaps as a rationalization to invalidate or challenge the results.

We have to work now to prevent those nightmare scenarios from coming true.

Looking Ahead

We are doing all this while continuing to work on our long-term campaigns and efforts.

This includes preparing for a possible post-Trump era, when we hope not just to wipe away the damage inflicted, but also to win transformative victories for democracy, drug pricing, climate, corporate accountability and much more.

We’re at a crossroads in our history.

What we do now will determine not only how we survive the pandemic but also what kind of society we have going forward.

I’m counting on you to help us build a world based on compassion and solidarity, justice and democracy.

If you can, please make a donation today to help us do that work together.

Your contribution will be matched dollar-for-dollar, but only if it comes in before midnight tonight.

Donate now.

Thank you!

In unity,

- Robert Weissman, President of Public Citizen

P.S. If you've donated recently, thank you. At such a critical moment — and with the dollar-for-dollar match in effect only until midnight tonight — I’m hoping I can ask you to dig a little deeper and make another contribution if you’re able. Either way, my thanks again for your ongoing support of this shared project we call Public Citizen.
 
 
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