WASHINGTON A massive increase in government aid due to the coronavirus epidemic will reduce poverty by nearly half this year, compared to preandemic levels. It will also push the percentage of Americans living in poverty to their lowest point on record. This is according to the most thorough analysis of a large but temporary expansion to the safety net.Nearly 20 million Americans are expected to be poorer than in 2018, a drop of nearly 45 percent. This is a remarkable development because it defies economic headwinds. The economy now has almost seven million fewer jobs that it had before the pandemic.This extraordinary decrease in poverty came at a tremendous cost. Annual spending on major programs is expected to increase fourfold to more that $1 trillion. Millions of families could find it difficult to escape poverty without expensive new measures. These three programs, which cut poverty most through stimulus checks, increased food stamps, and expanded unemployment insurance, have all been ended or will soon be reverted to their preandemic sizes.
