Opinion: Family Business and Coronavirus Fears

The coronavirus pandemic has impacted more lives than any other crisis in recent U.S. history. Tragically, this ailment has led to the death of some patients who were already suffering from an illness. Unfortunately, the damage to society extends beyond these deaths because the panic about the virus has reached epic proportions. The stock market has had its worst slide since 1987. Multiple professional sports leagues have closed down for the first time in history. Broadway theaters have been closed and conferences in every state have been canceled. Consumer spending on travel and entertainment has dropped exponentially. Most people recognize that this crisis will have a negative impact on the economy. However, few people realize that coronavirus fears are having a devastating impact on a unique group of businesses that provide the most jobs in the country.

These businesses, which represent the biggest component of the global economy, have been overlooked by policy makers, ignored by politicians and rarely studied by economists. Family businesses, many of whom are being driven to the brink of failure by coronavirus fears, are suffering because they are “hidden in plain sight.” People spend a large percentage of their money with family businesses yet they don’t know anything about them or even how they survive with small profit margins. More importantly, the proposed coronavirus relief measures proposed by Congress ignore the need to help family businesses continue to provide the majority of jobs in the United States.

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