Public policies and effectiveness in the fight against pandemic diseases: A review on Turkey and selected countries

Health services, with their public nature, have been one of the most important service areas of the state in almost every period. Especially preventive health services and combating the epidemic are service areas that highlight the public good nature of health services. In this context, even in countries where intense liberal economic policies prevail, the state directly manages the process by creating the necessary budgets and policies when it comes to providing preventive health services and combating the epidemic. The subject of the thesis is to evaluate the public policies implemented by Turkey and selected countries against the Covid-19 epidemic, which emerged in China in December 2019 and spread rapidly around the world. In this context, public policies implemented in the fight against the Covid-19 epidemic in selected countries and Turkey and the effects of these policies on the social and economic structure will be examined. Nowadays, when population mobility increases, the spread of pandemics from one country to other countries has accelerated. The Covid-19 epidemic first appeared in Wuhan, China, and then spread to other countries in a short time. Some countries, which could not make sufficient predictions about the risks of the epidemic, could not take rapid steps regarding the relevant measures. The epidemic has negatively affected basic macroeconomic indicators such as economic growth, unemployment rate, exports and imports. Although social and economic measures were taken as the epidemic began to spread, the epidemic spread to all countries in a short time. While some countries such as China, Japan and Turkey have managed the epidemic process more successfully with comprehensive public policies and timely interventions, some countries such as Spain, Italy, the USA and the UK have failed in the fight against the epidemic due to both weak public health systems, neglect of the epidemic and late interventions. The nature and scope of the economic measures taken by countries were directly determining the magnitude of the effects of the epidemic on the economic structure. While economic losses were at lower levels in countries that implemented more intense public support and incentive mechanisms in the fight against the epidemic, personal income losses and deteriorations in the general economic structure were much more comprehensive and long-lasting in countries that could not provide sufficient contribution to such support and incentives. It is unquestionably accepted that state intervention is a necessity in the fight against the epidemic. Essential discussions are about what policy tools should be used in the intervention in question, which policy will be used with what intensity, and how the financial dimension of the process can be managed. Keywords: Covid-19, Pandemic, Public Health, Policy.