Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
$8B Of Covid Aid Was Fraud, But Aid Boosted Pay Of 740k Frontline Workers
The Hill: DOJ Finds More Than $8 Billion In COVID Aid Fraud
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has uncovered a vast array of alleged fraudulent and criminal activities tied to more than $8 billion in federal COVID-19 aid, the agency announced Thursday. In response, the agency said it was immediately appointing a new director tasked specifically with coronavirus fraud enforcement. Kevin Chambers, who joined the agency as an associate deputy attorney general, "plans to focus on large-scale criminal enterprises and foreign actors who sought to profit at the expense of the American people," the DOJ said. (Weixel, 3/10)
AP: Two Years Into COVID, Was $800B Payroll Aid Plan Worth It?
President Donald Trump rolled out the Paycheck Protection Program to catapult the U.S. economy into a quick recovery from the coronavirus pandemic by helping small businesses stay open and their employees working. President Joe Biden tweaked it to try to direct more of the money to poorer communities and minority-owned companies. Now, almost two years after the program made its debut, the question is what taxpayers got for the $800 billion. (Boak, 3/10)
Bloomberg: U.S. Covid Aid Boosted Pay Of 740,000 Frontline Workers
The Biden administration’s $350 billion state and local aid package provided hazard pay or bonuses for more than 740,000 workers on the front lines of the pandemic. First responders, teachers and other government employees “deserve to be compensated for keeping society running during the pandemic,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said during an online press briefing Wednesday, at which federal and local officials gave new details on programs financed by last year’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. (Moran and Albright, 3/9)
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Bloomberg: One In Five U.S. Adults Quit Their Job Last Year, Pew Survey Finds
About one in five non-retired U.S. adults said they quit a job last year, with the majority citing low pay, no opportunity for advancement and feeling disrespected at work as reasons why they left, according to a new Pew Research Center report Wednesday. The share jumped to 37% among those younger than 30, more than double the proportion of those ages 30 to 49 who did the same, the survey conducted Feb. 7-13 showed. A majority of those who quit a job last year -- and are not retired -- say they are now re-employed. (Pickert, 3/9)
