With the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s national eviction moratorium set to expire on July 31, 2021, new research estimates that nearly 2 million U.S. renter households will owe over $15 billion in back rent and utilities by August 2021 because of job loss or involuntary part-time work during the COVID-19 pandemic. The report updates forecasts from our March 2021 report with employment data through June and includes breakouts for each state.

These are estimates of rental debt prior to the distribution of emergency rental assistance. The estimates can help shed light on the extent to which rental assistance distributed thus far has addressed the needs of the most financially distressed households.

Read the report.

The Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer was recently released and contains some good and bad news. The good news – mortality rates for lung cancer in the United States rapidly declined from 2001 to 2018. Among the bad news- age-standardized oral and pharyngeal cancer incidence rates increased during that period and pharyngeal mortality rates also increased for men but dropped slightly for women. The incidence of most smoking-related cancers (lung, larynx, bladder) has been declining in the U.S. largely due to the declining prevalence of smoking.

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A new report and infographic from the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) present recently collected survey data on community health center experiences with audio-only telehealth during the pandemic. The report examines the lifeline telehealth provided for health centers and patients during the pandemic and stresses that unless lawmakers ensure the emergency flexibilities granted during the public health crisis continue, millions of patients could lose access to care. See the infographic for a summary of the impact of termination of emergency flexibilities.

The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) recently released Out of Reach 2021: The High Cost of Housing. This report highlights the mismatch between the wages people earn and the price of decent rental housing in every state, metropolitan area, and county in the U.S. This robust report and data are extremely valuable in making the case for rental assistance, affordable housing, and livable wages among other important policy priorities. The report also includes housing cost and wage data specific for Pennsylvania and our counties. Explore the full report that includes an interactive website with an easy-to-use search function for data by metropolitan-area ZIP codes.

The current enrollment landscape is and has been quite tumultuous. With many trying to return to a regular routine, taking a step back and looking at what we learned about enrollment assistance during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic is key. With millions losing job-based health insurance, assisters stepped up to the plate, creating new and initiative ways to conduct enrollment, outreach virtually, harnessing the power of social media, and continued to enroll despite lack of internet or Wi-Fi access or the ability to meet in-person with those who needed assistance the most. Young Invincibles, founded by a group of students in 2009, is a network of advocates committed to educating young adults on all aspects of life from finances to the importance of health insurance coverage to making smart economic choices to build a better future. This new report discusses the current enrollment landscape, COVID-19 enrollment, and highlights some federal policy recommendations.

Read the full State of Enrollment Report.