[mwerty]

I could not figure out what the author's overall position is on the pandemic response - understandable given the format.

Is the author saying we had all the tools ("ability") but we did not have the people in positions of power that the author approves of?

[dbmikus]

The author is saying that we had the tools and the plans, but the system de-incentivizes the ideal response, for a number of reasons the author claims throughout.

People in "power that the author approves of" seems like subtext that one would have to see on their own reading of the article. To me it seems like the author was arguing against some aspects of capitalism and how incentives for profit can misalign with benefits for society.