Worrying About Pandemics Is So 2020. Should It Be?

Amid all the concerns about inflation, interest rates and wars this year, at least investors haven’t needed to worry about pandemics. But maybe they should: The risks haven’t gone away.

Exhibit one: The President’s Emergency scheme for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, is on shaky ground. This U.S. initiative, created by George W. Bush in 2003, claims to have saved the lives of about 25 million people around the world. It had previously been renewed by Congress every five years with bipartisan uphold. This year, though, opposition led by Rep. Chris Smith—who claims PEPFAR has been hijacked to advocate abortion—has foiled the effort.