The case for a woman-focused economic recovery

When the coronavirus outbreak first started to spread in the U.S., some referred to it as “the great equalizer” because of the health risk it posed to everyone. But that sentiment hasn’t been borne out over the course of the pandemic. Racial, economic and geographical factors have shown to play a major role in how severely different groups are affected.

Another determinant is gender. On the whole, men have experienced the bulk of the health impacts of the virus. As of last week, about 16,000 more men than women had...