Third Stimulus Checks and Covid-19 Vaccination Updates

The $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief plan proposed by President Joseph Biden will consist of a third stimulus check for millions of low and middle-income Americans. However, even though this proposal has bipartisan support from both the major parties, there is still widespread disagreement on who should receive the $1,400 stimulus checks.

In the first week of February, Republican Senator Susan Collins and Democratic Senator Joe Manchin proposed a plan to block high-income Americans from receiving the third stimulus checks in the third phase of coronavirus federal relief. This plan was passed by the senate. However, the plan does not offer any definition of ‘upper income’ levels. This plan adds a degree of uncertainty to the relief measures proposed by the White House.

Stimulus checks and The US Economy

Economic data released on February 17, the second round of stimulus checks did do its job as intended. Retail sales had increased by over 5 percent in the month of January, which was better than market expectations. 

Yet despite the stimulus packages, the American economy continues to stutter due to different setbacks. These setbacks include the loss of income, job losses, and increased layoffs, etc. According to the Labor Department, applications for unemployment benefits increased in the third week of February to around 861,000. This was in contrast to the steady decline in this area over the last many weeks.

The same week, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities also released a statement about the economy. As per the organization, the US economy continues to be weak; the momentum of jobs recovery had slowed down to a crawl; and that there were almost 10 million fewer jobs this February as compared to February 2020. It also stated that the new stimulus package would help millions of Americans in these dire times.

The democrats in the House have finished their markups without making any major alterations to the President’s Covid relief plan. The bill will be put to vote in the House in the last week of February 2021. It will then pass to the Senate who will take it up for voting in the first week of March.

Democrats in Congress are planning to move the relief bill forward via a process known as budget reconciliation. This will permit the Senate to approve and pass the bill without any support from Republican senators.

Who received the First and Second Stimulus checks?

In the first two phases of Covid relief, checks of $1,200 and $600 were disbursed by the federal government. These packages also had restrictions on eligibility. In both cases, single individuals earning up to $75,000 and married couples earning up to $150,000 were eligible and received the full amount.

As income increased, the payout amounts became lower until it was cut off fully for high-income individuals or married couples. The cut-off limit for payouts in the first round was $198,000 for married people and $99,000 for singles. In the second round, the cut-off limits were $174,000 for married people and $87,000 for single individuals.

Who will be eligible for the $1,400 stimulus checks?

New data shows that many middle and high-income earner’s finances have stabilized as of February 2021. Most of them have been able to work from home and earn a stable income. Data also indicated that the second stimulus checks were quickly used up by people earning under $78,000 per year, while those earning more than $78,000, saved or invested their stimulus money.

Lawmakers in Congress are in a current debate over targeted relief checks towards low-income Americans who are most vulnerable to the economic strife imposed by the pandemic and its continued spread.

In the first week of February, Democrats in the House had opposed the idea of lowering the income level limits; they wanted the same income levels to continue as was the case in the first two rounds. But the stirring debate about the targeting of stimulus checks has resulted in President Biden articulating his willingness to negotiate. The President has stated that he will not negotiate the amount, i.e., $1,400 checks, but will be fine with directing the checks to Americans who need it the most.

If the negotiations are fruitful, there is a possibility that the eligibility threshold for stimulus checks can be lowered. Accordingly, married couples earning up to $100,000 and singles earning up to $50,000 may qualify for the checks. If the threshold is lowered, then it would mean that millions of Americans who received the checks in the first two phases will not get the checks in the third round. In the first two rounds, the IRS had made payouts to about 30 million American households earning over $75,000. With the new limits, it is likely that a lot of these households will not get the full $1,400 check in the third stimulus package.

When can Americans expect their third stimulus checks?

According to Democratic House and Senate members, the new coronavirus relief bill will most likely pass Congress by mid-March, before the expiration of the current weekly $300 additional unemployment aid on March 14.

After the passage of the bill by Congress, the President has to sign it. Once President Biden signs it, the stimulus checks would be directed by the IRS to all qualified households. Based on the data from the last two phases, the checks will be paid in the form of direct deposits within 1 week after the bill is signed by the President.

Americans who do not have bank accounts or Americans whose payment information is not available with the IRS will need to wait longer. Their stimulus checks will be delivered via mail in the form of prepaid debit cards or paper checks.

Covid-19 Vaccination Update in the US

The first vaccinations in the US were conducted in December 2020. Since then, over 73 million doses of vaccines have been delivered by the federal government to different states and jurisdictions.

Moderna has promised to deliver 200 million doses by end of May and another 100 million by end of July. Pfizer is also expected to delivering about 200 million doses by end of May.

If Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccine gets authorized for emergency use by the FDA, the company promised to deliver 100 million doses by end of June. Taking all of this into account, the entire US population will be fully vaccinated by end of July.

Who is now eligible to be vaccinated?

• Everyone 65 years and older
• Health care personnel
• Essential workers
• Adults of any age with medical conditions