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Federal Register/Vol. 87, No. 18/Thursday, January 27, 2022/Rules and Regulations 4371
<br /> balance and deposit more SLFRF funds, household income of$6,100 (measured 12 schools into the category"assistance
<br /> back up to the pre-pandemic balance. in 2018 dollars).184 to impacted households,"recognizing
<br /> The impact pre-existing inequalities that these pandemic impacts were
<br /> Disproportionately Impacted
<br /> Enumerated Eligible Uses for have on a household or community's widely shared across the country.
<br /> ability to recover is intersectional. This section discusses enumerated
<br /> Households Research shows that pre-existing racial eligible uses to address health
<br /> Background and gender disparities exacerbated the disparities,to build stronger
<br /> disproportionate economic and health communities through investments in
<br /> The COVID-19 pandemic has had impact COVID-19 and the economic neighborhoods,to address educational
<br /> disproportionally negative impacts on downturn had on workers of color,and disparities,to provide rental assistance
<br /> many households and communities that specifically,women of color.185 Another vouchers or assistance relocating to
<br /> were already experiencing inequality study found that during the first six areas of greater economic opportunity,
<br /> related to race,gender,age, or income months of the pandemic counties that and additional eligible uses to respond
<br /> before the pandemic.People of color, were both high-poverty and majority to negative economic impacts in
<br /> low-income workers,and women non-white experienced COVID-19 disproportionately impacted
<br /> disproportionately lost their jobs during infection rates eight times higher than communities.While many of these
<br /> the COVID-19 pandemic and high-poverty,majority white services impact both health and
<br /> r
<br /> experienced disproportionate rates of counties. Many residents in these economic outcomes,Treasury has
<br /> negative health outcomes.180 181 communities are still coping with the consolidated them into a single section
<br /> negative health and economic impacts. for simplicity and clarity and to reflect
<br /> These disproportionate negative the intertwined nature of these issues.
<br /> impacts experienced by systemically Summary of the Interim Final Rule and As a reminder,recipients can
<br /> underserved communities are not novel Final Rule Structure presume these uses are eligible when
<br /> to the COVID-19 pandemic and the As described previously,the interim provided in a QCT,to families and
<br /> economic downturn.Research shows final rule provided a broader list of individuals living in QCTs,by Tribal or
<br /> that historically underserved enumerated eligible uses to respond to territorial governments, or to low-
<br /> communities that are experiencing the pandemic in disproportionately income households or communities.As
<br /> economic and social disparities impacted communities,in recognition provided in section Standards:
<br /> typically experience disproportionate that pre-existing health, economic,and Designating Other Disproportionately
<br /> impacts of economic downturns and social disparities contributed to Impacted Classes,recipients can also
<br /> natural disasters.182 This pattern held disproportionate pandemic impacts in provide these services to other
<br /> true for the effects of COVID-19 and the certain communities and that populations,households, or geographic
<br /> economic downturn:Historically addressing the root causes of those areas disproportionately impacted by
<br /> undeserved groups experienced disparities constitutes responding to the the pandemic.Recipients may also
<br /> amplified negative impacts, further public health and negative economic identify additional disproportionate
<br /> widening inequality.183 impacts of the pandemic. The interim impacts of the pandemic and design an
<br /> final rule described eligible uses in appropriate response to address that
<br /> Many communities facing systemic disproportionately impacted harm. For details on eligibility
<br /> barriers had not yet recovered from the impact of the Great Recession before communities in four categories, spread standards and presumed eligible
<br /> across public health and negative populations, see section General
<br /> experiencing the impacts of COVID-19 economic impacts: (1)Addressing Provisions: Structure and Standards.
<br /> and the economic downturn. For disparities in public health outcomes,
<br /> example,in 2009, at the end of the Great (2)building stronger communities Enumerated Eligible Uses for
<br /> Recession,households without a high through investments in housing and Disproportionately Impacted
<br /> school diploma had an average annual neighborhoods, (3) addressing Households
<br /> income of$32,300 (measured in 2018 educational disparities, and(4) 1.Addressing health disparities.
<br /> dollars). By 2018,nine years into the promoting healthy childhood Public Comment:General:In general,
<br /> economic recovery,those same environments.As described above, commenters supported eligible uses to
<br /> households saw their average income Treasury has moved eligible uses related address health disparities and support
<br /> increase by$600. During that same time to community violence intervention, health equity; several commenters
<br /> period,households with a bachelor's assistance accessing or applying to highlighted the disparities faced by
<br /> degree saw an increase in their average public benefits and services,affordable communities of color and low-income
<br /> housing development,healthy populations, as well as the importance
<br /> 180 U.S.Department of Health and Human childhood environments,and of community engagement in
<br /> Services,COVID-19 and Economic Opportunity: addressing lost instructional time in K— developing effective programs to serve
<br /> Inequities in the Employment Crisis,April 2021. disproportionately impacted
<br /> Retrieved from https://aspe.hhs.gov/sites/default/ 184 Jesse Bennet&Rakesh Kochhar,Two communities.Many commenters
<br /> files/migrated legacy_files//199901/covid- Recessions,Two Recoveries,Pew Research Center
<br /> economic-equity-brief.pdf. (December 13,2019),https://www.pewresearch.orgl recommended additional enumerated
<br /> 181 Adelle Simmons et al.,Health disparities by social-trends/2019/12/13/two-recessions-two- eligible uses to address health
<br /> race and ethnicity during the COVID-19 pandemic: recoveries-21. disparities;these are discussed further
<br /> Current evidence and policy approaches.U.S. 185 Darrick Hamilton et al.,Building an Equitable below in this section.
<br /> Department of Health and Human Services https:// Recovery:The role of Race,Labor Markets,and
<br /> e.hhs. ov/sites/de ault/Iles/mi rated_legacy_ Treasury Response:In line with
<br /> as
<br /> p g f f g Education,The New Schools Institute on Race and
<br /> files//199516/covid-equity-issue-brief. . Political Economy(February 2021). commenters'recommendations,the
<br /> 182 Perry,Brea L.,Brian Aronson,and Bernice A. 186 Adhikari S,Pantaleo NP,Feldman JM, final rule maintains several enumerated
<br /> Pescosolido,Pandemic precarity:COVID-19 is Ogedegbe O,Thorpe L,Troxel AB.Assessment of eligible uses to address health
<br /> exposing and exacerbating inequalities in the Community-Level Disparities in Coronavirus disparities, specifically:
<br /> American heartland,National Academy of Sciences Disease 2019(COVID-19)Infections and Deaths in
<br /> (Febuary 2021),https://www.pnas.org/content/118/ Large US Metropolitan Areas.JAMA Netw Open. a• Community health workers.
<br /> Treasury received few comments on
<br /> 8/e2020685118. 2020;3(7):e2016938.doi:10.1001/
<br /> 183 jd. jamanetworkopen.2020.16938. community health workers,though one
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