Bring Back COVID Aid Programs to Fix America’s Poverty Crisis

According to a recent breaking news item in the New York Times, the overall poverty rate in America has jumped from 7.8 percent in 2021 to 12.4 percent in 2022 - the largest one-year jump on record. The poverty rate has more than doubled for children. This is not only because of the rising costs of locking but the all-too-predictable results of yanking away the COVID aid programs that supported so many people in crisis, from the child tax credits and greater SNAP benefits to expanded UI and housing support. How can we talk about our wonderful economy in the midst of such a humanitarian and moral disaster? We aren’t adequately housing, feeding, or caring for almost 42 million of our fellow Americans, many of whom are children. We need to bring back the support programs we put in place during COVID to address America’s poverty crisis - and make them PERMANENT!