"You can't make a dead person sick."
--World Health Organization Doctor (World War Z)
Another reason why government is not very capable at containing infectious disease: moral hazard. Many people believe that it is indeed government's role to protect them against infectious disease. They believe that government is acting on their behalf to keep them safe, and that those actions will be effective.
Because they believe that government has their back, people take more risk than they otherwise would w.r.t. actions that might expose them to harmful pathogens. "If it wasn't safe," people reason, "authorities wouldn't permit the action." And, "Government will let me know what to do."
So people think less critically on their own and act more foolishly, thereby raising the probability that they will become infected.
Stated differently, confidence in government causes people to take more risk, which likely exacerbates contagion.
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People don't want to think. And the deeper they get into trouble, the less they want to think. But by some sort of instinct, they feel that they ought to and it makes them feel guilty. So they'll bless and follow anyone who gives them a justification for not thinking.
~Ayn Rand
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