COVID-19, also known as the coronavirus, is a recent infectious disease that causes respiratory illness. Originating in the city of Wuhan, China in December 2019, it is thought to have started at a wet market. After an incubation period of around 14 days, symptoms start appearing in individuals with a wide range of severity. Common symptoms include cough, fever, shortness of breath, muscle aches, sore throat, loss of smell or taste, diarrhea, and or a headache (Sauer, 2020). While some symptoms can be mild, in rare cases it can lead to grave reactions such as kidney failure, severe respiratory complications, and possible death. A highly contagious virus, COVID-19 spreads through droplets that are released into the air through coughing or sneezing from an infected individual. Corona virus can only be diagnosed only through a laboratory test as it shares symptoms with the flu or bad cold. As these tests must be ordered by a doctor, it is difficult for the average individual to know whether they have the disease unless they are experiencing more severe symptoms. To perform the test, the potentially infected individual gets a long skinny swab inserted into their nose, and reaches the upper part of the throat behind the nose, called the nasopharynx (Maragakis, 2020). Individuals who are sick can only have supportive measures as there is no cure for the virus at the moment. Canada had confirmed its first case related to travel outside mainland China on February 20, 2020, and with its first COVID-19 related death on March 9. In response to the pandemic, the Canadian government has installed certain safety measurements.

The COVID-19 has been declared a global pandemic in March 2020. In among these circumstances, many cities have declared a state of emergency in which enforces mandatory geographic quarantines to non-mandatory recommendations to stay at home, closures of certain types of businesses, or bans on events and gatherings. The City of Vancouver had declared a state of emergency to slow down the spread of COVID-19 during March 2020, and the city had already announced the closure of most civic facilities and the suspension of non-essential programs. In addition, there have been widespread financial challenges amidst Vancouver populations and industries. While the majority of businesses will face a negative economic impact, and business respondents have said they will be temporarily closing their offices or workplaces.  The survey, completed for the Mayor’s Office by Research Co., shows that 46 percent of those living in the city have either lost their jobs or experienced a reduction in hours. This has led to half of all households reporting an overall decrease in income, with 24 percent experiencing a significant decrease. For homeowners, only 68 percent said they could pay their full mortgage payment last month, and only 55 percent say they will be able to do the same in May. As governments are confronting with the closure of business operations, they provided population and business with benefits such as Canada Emergency Response Benefit and Employment Insurance for people suffering from the loss of income or unemployment at this time period. It is our goal to look at economically-impacted populations and formulating a detailed analysis to look at the vulnerable population that will not be able to earn an income due to job loss, reduction in working hours, and business closure. It is highly important to look at the closure of most civic facilities including the service industry and blue collars that involve working on site.