Illness Impacts

During the four calendar years ending 2019, 5.5 million employed persons/day didn’t go to work. In 2020, the year Covid-19 arrived, the number jumped to 6.9 million persons/day. In 2021, it fortunately declined to a still elevated 6 million/day, with the 500,000 person-rise directly attributable to illness. This large increase directly hurts supply-chains, boosts inflation, and reduces GDP. How much more will this number fall as Covid-19 becomes endemic?