October 2021
Spotlight on: Direct Cash Benefits During the Pandemic
Cash benefits supported low-income New Yorkers with spending, saving, and returning to work
Contributors: Vicki Lens, Lily Bushman-Copp, Katie Gamalski, Caterina Pisciotta, Abe Arriaga, Daniel Salgado
Issues Areas: Covid 19, Financial Security
Poverty Tracker data shows that the significant expansion of cash benefits provided through the CARES Act during the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have forestalled a devastating increase in the poverty rate between 2019 and 2020, and illustrates how these government interventions played a large role in helping families survive.