CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–Nearly 40% of U.S. households are reporting they faced “serious financial difficulties in recent months of the COVID-19 pandemic,” with one-fifth saying they have depleted all their savings, according to a new poll.
But the survey also found another fifth of respondents said their financial situation has improved.
Those citing financial difficulties said they have had trouble paying utility bills, credit card debt and more, the poll from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and National Public Radio, found.
According to the poll, nearly 60% of households earning less than $50,000 a year reported facing serious financial challenges in recent months. Of those, 30% lost all of their savings, the poll found.
More Than 3,000 People Surveyed
The findings are based on questions posed to about 3,600 adults in August and early September about a variety of potential problems during the pandemic and how the effects have continued in more recent months. In addition to financial concerns, respondents were asked about healthcare, education, child care and personal safety.
In its analysis, the Wall Street Journal said the poll results show how the pandemic has “deepened an already divided economy in the U.S., with well-off people and businesses coming out the same or stronger while many lower-wage workers were thrust into financial crisis.”
The poll also found close to 20% of those surveyed said their financial situation is better now than before COVID-19 outbreak, compared with 32% who said their situation is worse. About half, 49%, said it stayed the same.
‘Still in a Lifeboat’
“We’re in the middle of a period of real peoples’ lives where they’re still in a lifeboat worried about just getting to shore,” said Robert Blendon, co-director of the survey and emeritus professor of health policy and political analysis at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Those earning less than $50,000 annually are still in need of short-term assistance programs, he said.
The poll also found education was a concern among respondents. Of those with children in grades K to 12, 69% said their children fell behind in school last year.
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