The eviction moratorium expires Saturday, and millions could lose their homes.
For the vaccine-line essay, we worked with Surgo Ventures, a health nonprofit we encountered when searching for new and interesting data. They had created a tool for health officials to plan vaccine rollouts, showing who qualified for the jab in each state. I kept in touch with one of the leaders behind that project, Sema K. Sgaier, who is a professor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and the co-founder and chief executive of Surgo Ventures. |
Together, we worked on another piece that profiled the four types of people who are hesitant about getting the vaccine, and using survey data and analysis, allowed you to dig into the reasons for vaccine skepticism in your state. |
As the pandemic raged on, Sema kept an eye out for moments when her team's data work could guide policymakers toward urgent problems. That's why she's returned this week, with her colleague Aaron Dibner-Dunlap: to raise the alarm about an eviction crisis that has been building throughout the pandemic. It's not yet a full-blown disaster — but only because an eviction moratorium prevented people from losing their homes. But that expires on Saturday. And when it ends, more than six million American households could face eviction and homelessness. |
Their estimates are staggering. Renters overall owe $23 billion, or about $3,700 on average. In Los Angeles, the average renter who's behind owes about $5,300. In New York, more than 400,000 are behind. Smaller counties are not spared: In Columbia County, Ga., the writers estimate that 1,200 households owe a total of $4.6 million in unpaid rent. |
The federal government is trying to help, earmarking $50 billion of aid for renters. But local governments are struggling to connect renters with the money. And they're running out of time to do so. |
A lot of our work in Opinion tries to bring attention to people who need help. That's harder to do with an eviction crisis, since struggling renters are found in every county and state. The data helps tell that story in a very concrete way, showing not just how many people are falling behind, but where they live and who's responsible for giving them the help that they need. |
Here's what we're focusing on today: |
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