Gary Easley worked as a chef at the Four Points by Sheraton in Charleston, West Virginia, for 25 years. On St. Patrick’s Day, he was laid off, a victim of falling revenues. Coronavirus fears had led people to stay home. Others lost their jobs or were unable to travel because of state shelter-in-place orders. Fewer and fewer were visiting the hotel’s restaurant.

Along with his paycheck, Easley’s health insurance disappeared practically overnight. It was particularly frightening for him because he suffers from a variety of chronic conditions for which he takes nine different prescriptions, which, absent insurance, would cost him about $2,700 a month, he told the Washington Post.

Fortunately, Easley was able to get help from a free clinic. But his story has been replicated all across the country as joblessness has reached levels not seen since the Great Depression. Unlike the 1930s, however, most Americans now get their health insurance through their employers. When jobs go, so does health coverage — an unfortunate thing to happen anytime, but especially in the midst of the high unemployment caused by governments’ response to COVID-19.

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