The stimulus checks might have been expended by a lot of families, but made quite a difference while it lasted. Many families for the first time could afford to sit at a meal without worrying how the next one would come by. For others, it meant a few more months of retaining a roof over their head or money for their medicines. Others squirreled to save for a rainy day.
The last two rounds put $2,000 more into the hands of most Americans in the first six months of this year. Maybe there was more that should have been done, but these safety nets ensured immediate relief for people just when they needed it.
The Stimulus Check Came At The Right Time For Many Americans
Supporters of the initiative believed that the direct method was the only way to bring relief to millions of people in distress due to the pandemic. But skeptics said that it was money ill-spent, and would discourage people from going back to work.
After three rounds a fresh round of analysis and research has thrown up some insight into the result a stimulus check could have on a population constrained by the economic hardships brought upon by the pandemic.
The Census Bureau has found that the latest rounds of stimulus checks have been able to help Americans out of one of the most desperate times since World War II. It put food on the table, a roof over the head for most, money to buy medicines, and even some to spare them the anxiety and depression of being tied at home with no workaround. And the figures threw up some affecting facts.
The toughest times were reserved for families with children. And for such families, it made much difference as food shortages went down by 42%, and financial instability went down by 43%. And it played on their mental health too, with depression and anxiety down by 20%.
While the indirect aid and the economic turnaround will go a long way, it was the immediate benefits, especially in the first half of this year that saw the biggest decline in various indicators of hardship.
The Stimulus Checks Has Its Skeptics
Perhaps it would not be possible to weigh the cost of $585 billion against the benefits that accrued. Skeptics have pointed at the swelling deficit. They have said that many economically stable families also benefited from the program. It also discouraged many people from going back to work. The economy would have turned around anyway with the opening up of the markets.
Critics maintain that a sudden influx of cash would lead to many people spending it for the wrong reasons.
But University of Michigan professor, H. Luke Shaefer, who, along with a colleague, Patrick Cooney authored the study says that there has been a direct decline in hardship along multiple lines for the disadvantaged families.
And the evidence on the ground tells a different story. Shaefer said there were strong arguments for a direct cash infusion. 5.2 million children were saved from a shortage of food this year alone, a figure he finds dramatic.
Many families had to struggle with multiple hardships, ranging from education costs, health issues, multiple insurance bills, never-ending utility bills. A sudden influx of stimulus amounts helped such people balance their budgets to some extent. For a certain period, it bridged a gap that needed immediate attention, before more indirect stimulus came in.
But Scott Winship, with the American Enterprise Institute, opined that the hard times were bound to pass anyway. Most people earning low wages would have earned credit checks on their income tax. And then there is the child tax credit that could give families with children up to $8,500 a year.
Stimulus Checks Even To The Relatively Well Healed
Another point of contention was the uniform amount in the stimulus checks that sent the same amount to families earning above $100,000 as to those earning under $30,000.
But Shaefer noted that the hardship was not limited to the lower-income group and it would have created fissures in society if only one section of it were to benefit. A nutritional deficiency was noted even among children in families earning between $50,000 and $75,000. That figure has been halved with the introduction of the stimulus checks.
Some More Sunlight: The Effect On Mental Health Is Incalculable
It was the most amount that many Americans had seen in their lifetime. Many people were able to bring down liabilities, including overdue rent, mortgages, and, in many cases, crippling credit card loans.
Mental health issues and poverty are always linked. Unpaid bills, disconnected water and electricity lines, the threat of homelessness, and limited food on the table are not exactly the recipe for a buoyant frame of mind.
The uncertainty brings stress and other mental health issues for many low-income families. Economic uncertainty is always linked to anxiety, and the economic hardship combined with the pandemic has been a terrible year for people with limited resources.
The level of anxiety gets compounded when the economic situation threatens to take away necessities like food, clothing, and shelter. The statistics are alarming. 73% of people having children reported experiencing various levels of stress and anxiety. The stimulus checks have acted as a palliative for many households. The figure has fallen to 57% since.
Food stamps and disability checks can only help people manage to survive. And as not all able members of a family get work, things get frustrating sooner.
A Need For Continual Support
The third stimulus checks have reached almost most households and most have admitted that they have almost used up the amount. With no supplementary income, the money was bound to run out soon.
There are only the unemployment benefits of $300 per week that will last till September 6. 2021. The child tax credit should start on July 15 for families with children and continue through December 2021. They will get half of the total amount in these six months. The rest will come in the 2021 tax season.
Case For A Fourth Stimulus Check
The vaccination drive and the resulting opening of the economy will help in the turnaround. But jobs are still hard to come by in many states. The food and hospitality industry and many other sectors continue to remain affected. And it will take some time for the situation to return to pre-pandemic levels.
Many influential Democratic lawmakers have made a case for more stimulus checks; calling for a fourth and even a fifth payment. But there has been a studied silence from the White House as the President continues to be preoccupied with the infrastructure bill. It is his $2 trillion plan for a total overhaul of the infrastructure.
A petition from ordinary Americans has also collected more than 2.2 million signatures on the change.org platform. But it remains to be seen if the President has the intent or the influence to push through any more stimulus checks in the future.
