‘Silent crisis' looms as US ends COVID aid for millions of jobless

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) - Spending less on food. Drawing down on retirement savings. Dropping out of the workforce altogether.

Last year, the United States massively expanded unemployment aid as COVID-19 broke out. But in the coming days those benefits will end, forcing millions of jobless Americans – some of whom haven't worked for the entire pandemic – to make hard choices about how they will get by in an economy newly menaced by the Delta variant.

I have no idea how we would survive, just on my daughter's income, said Deborah Lee, an unemployed phlebotomist in Arizona who is recovering from a COVID outbreak that affected her daughter and two of her three granddaughters.

The government-funded programs that increased weekly payments and gave aid to the long-term unemployed and freelancers were credited with keeping the United States from an even worse economic collapse last year.