Issue Briefs

Accessible and affordable health insurance is critical to maintaining a healthy nation, both physically and financially. For workers and families, health insurance can greatly reduce—and even eliminate—out-of-pocket medical costs. Higher rates of health insurance coverage also create economy-wide benefits, including more productive communities and greater economic mobility.

Action by Democrats in Congress and the current administration prevented millions of families from falling below the poverty line in 2021. Even as the coronavirus pandemic and ensuring recession threatened the lives and economic well-being of countless Americans, federal policies were remarkably effective at mitigating the economic effects of the pandemic.

Giving children born in the United States an automatic childhood savings account, a “Baby Bond,” would ensure that everyone is able to start adulthood with the financial stability to pursue their goals.

The expanded Child Tax Credit helped drive child poverty to a record low in 2021, even amid the pandemic and resulting economic crisis

Each month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) releases national and state-level data on U.S. employment, which provide useful information about the state of the labor market and progress toward building a better America. See October's state jobs data here.

Among wealthy, industrialized countries, the United States has the highest rate of maternal mortality as well as an elevated rate of maternal morbidity, which refers to serious illness related to pregnancy and childbirth. First and foremost, deteriorating maternal health is a human tragedy, one that disproportionately affects communities of color.

Access to abortion and contraception is key to economic freedom and enables people to make the decisions that are right for them and their financial security, leading to higher earnings, increased labor force participation, improved educational outcomes—among women, men, and children—and reduced poverty.

Joint Economic Committee Democrats

Issue Briefs

Dec 09 2022

DISTRICT DATA: Expanded Access to Health Insurance Keeps the Nation Healthy and Boosts Economic Security

Dec 09 2022

Economic Update - December 9, 2022

Dec 08 2022

Expanding Economic Security Programs During the Pandemic Led to a Historic Decline in Poverty

Dec 02 2022

Economic Update - December 2, 2022

Dec 01 2022

Baby Bonds Promote Economic Opportunity and Drive Broad-Based Growth

Nov 30 2022

The Expanded Child Tax Credit Dramatically Reduced Child Poverty in 2021

Nov 21 2022

STATE BY STATE FACT SHEETS: OCTOBER EMPLOYMENT DATA

Nov 18 2022

Economic Update - November 18, 2022

Nov 17 2022

Improving Maternal Health Care Would Save Lives and Prevent Economic Losses, Especially for Women of Color

Nov 16 2022

Access to Comprehensive Reproductive Health Care is Also an Economic Issue