大流行一年，数以百万计的美国人仍在挣扎
自2020年8月的最后一次脉搏调查以来，越来越多的人努力负担医疗保健，这可能会导致长期健康后果，而不是直接由Covid-19产生的后果。
Since the last脉冲调查in August 2020, more people are struggling to afford healthcare, which may lead to long-term health consequences beyond those created directly by COVID-19. Black and Latinx Americans continue to bear the brunt of the economic crisis, with many struggling to put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads. Financially Vulnerable Americans and those with low incomes are far more likely than others to say their financial situation has gotten worse over the past year. Additionally, people who reported a job loss because of COVID-19 are at risk of falling further behind while the rest of the economy recovers. As the COVID-19 crisis approaches the one-year mark, policymakers, businesses, and employers must act now to deliver immediate relief and invest in long-term solutions that reduce financial health inequities over time.
这些结果基于来自南加州大学成员的全国代表性调查（n = 4,404）的数据在线消费面板(Jan. 11-18, 2021).
自2020年8月上次进行脉搏调查以来，无法负担医疗保健的人口份额有所增加。截至1月中旬，有14％的受访者说，自去年3月开始大流行以来，家庭中的某人没有得到他们需要的医疗保健因为他们负担不起（从2020年8月，十分之一的美国人报告了这一点，就增加了四分）。
Ten percent of respondents say that someone in their household stopped taking a medication or took less than directed because of the costs (a three point increase from August 2020, when 7% of Americans reported this).
这些趋势可能是由于许多家庭正在经历的持续财务压力所驱动的，这说明了家庭在限制资源时做出的困难选择。放弃医疗服务，包括延迟预防保健, may causeworse health outcomesfor many Americans beyond those created directly by COVID-19.
将近四分之一的黑人受访者（23％）和五分之一的拉丁裔受访者（22％）表示，他们担心自大流行以来的食物开始耗尽，相比之下，有12％的白人受访者和15％的亚裔美国人受访者。为了应对这些挑战，有27％的黑人受访者和17％的拉丁裔受访者表示，自2020年3月开始大流行以来，他们已经访问了一家食品银行（大大高于12％的白人受访者和8％的亚裔受访者这个）。
More than a quarter of Black (29%) and Latinx (27%) respondents also say they worried about being able to afford their rent or mortgage since the pandemic began last March (compared with 14% of White respondents and 15% of Asian American respondents). While the Biden administration’s recent驱逐和丧失抵押品赎回权的延伸可以提供一个临时的缓刑,黑色和Latinxrespondents remain apprehensive about the future: 16% of Black and 12% of Latinx respondents say they are worried their household will be evicted in the next three months, compared with 6% of White respondents and 8% of Asian American respondents. Without additional assistance and protections, millions of people, particularly those in Black and Latinx communities, may lose their homes in the coming months.
Half of those considered Financially Vulnerable (approximately 17.5 million people) report their financial situation has worsened since the pandemic began last March, compared with 19% of Financially Coping and only 6% of Financially Healthy individuals. (The three tiers of financial health – Healthy, Coping, and Vulnerable – are determined using theFinhealthScore®，这反映了个人的支出，节省，借贷和计划的方式。）
同样，家庭收入低于30,000美元的人的可能性是收入超过60,000美元的人的两倍以上，说他们的财务状况在过去一年中变得更糟。这两个群体 - 那些被认为在财务上脆弱的人，每年少于30,000美元的人都比其他受访者更有可能说他们的家庭收入有所减少，而由于冠状病毒疫情的增加，他们的费用增加了。这些数字表明，Covid-19的大流行正在继续对经济上脆弱的美国人的财务生活和生计造成不成比例的损失。
Across all demographic groups, people whose employment was affected by the COVID-19 crisis are in particularly dire financial straits. Nearly half (45%) of people in households where a family member lost a job because of the crisis say their financial situation is worse than it was a year ago, compared with only 14% of people without a reported job loss. To make ends meet, those who reported a job loss have resorted to various coping strategies: 59% say they spent down their household’s savings, 55% say they carried a balance on their credit cards, and 29% say they borrowed money from friends or family since the pandemic began last March.
In fact, individuals who reported a job loss were 2.6 times more likely to say they spent down their savings, 1.7 times more likely to say they carried a credit card balance, and three times more likely to say they borrowed money from friends and family than people who did not report a job loss. Unless federal and state unemployment benefits are extended, those who lost a job as a result of the crisis are at risk of falling far farther behind as the rest of the country recovers.
