Federalism should underpin disaster preparation and response, and emergency supply systems should be mainly based on distributed stockpiling, markets, and horizontal cooperation.

Disasters usually prompt calls for a top‐down response led by the Commander in Chief and guided by the supposedly higher expertise in Washington.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) oversees the safety of human and veterinary drugs, biological products, medical devices, foods, cosmetics, and products that emit radiation. The agency also regulates the manufacturing and marketing of tobacco.

Some pundits are blaming the slow federal response to COVID‐19 on budget cuts and supposedly shrunken federal bureaucracies.

The economic damage from COVID-19 business shutdowns could be massive. We’re starting to see the effects with initial unemployment claims spiking to a record 3.3 million last week.

President Trump is eager for businesses to reopen, now setting a goal of the end of April. Former Vice President Biden is pushing the opposite way, saying he wants an immediate nationwide stay‐at‐home order to slow the spread of COVID-19.

The Senate has passed a $2.2 trillion aid bill in response to the coronavirus crisis. The bill is expected to be passed quickly by the House and signed by the president.

Businesses are racing to produce vaccines, treatments, and medical supplies to help slow and ultimately defeat the pandemic.

The American economy is closing down rapidly from both voluntary and mandatory business closings.

Covid‐19 is pushing the U.S. economy into recession as businesses cut back and close down.