(Note: A version of this episode originally ran in 2016.) Back in 2016, things were pretty bad in Venezuela. Grocery stores didn't have enough food. Hospitals didn't have basic supplies, like gauze. Child mortality was spiking. Businesses were shuttering. It's one of the epic economic collapses of our time. And it was totally avoidable. Venezuela used to be a relatively rich country. It has just about all the economic advantages a country could ask for: Beautiful beaches and mountains ready for tourism, fertile land good for farming, an educated population, and oil, lots and lots of oil. But during the boom years, the Venezuelan government made some choices that add up to an economic time bomb. Today on the show, we have an economic horror story about a country that made all the wrong decisions with its oil money. It's a window into the fundamental way that money works and how when you try to control it, you can lose everything. Then, an update on Venezuela today. How it went from a downward spiral, to a tentative economic stabilization... amidst political upheaval. This original episode is hosted by Robert Smith and Noel King. It was produced by Nick Fountain and Sally Helm. Today's update was hosted by Amanda Aronczyk, produced by Sean Saldana, fact checked by Sierra Juarez, and engineered by Neal Rauch. Alex Goldmark is our Executive Producer. Help support Planet Money and hear our bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
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Hey, everybody, it's Amanda Aronczyk.
Today, a kind of undercovered and unexpected update to one of the biggest economic meltdowns in recent history, the venezuelan comeback.
Back in 2016, Robert Smith and Noel King explained how the venezuelan economy collapsed.
We will start there and then we will come back with an how the venezuelan economy stabilized.
Here are Noel and Robert from 2016, when the economy of Venezuela was still.
In freefall, I talked with a doctor in Venezuela the other day, a neurosurgeon.
Hed been working in the public hospitals in Caracas for free, I should say pro bono.
And recently he just had to quit.
The conditions in the public hospital were getting too dangerous.
I didnt want to jeopardize anybodys life because of being irresponsible.
Im sure youve heard about the situation in Venezuela right now.
Its in the midst of this economic crisis.
Collapse is probably a better word.