We assess the effects of the unprecedented expansion of unemployment insurance bills in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. The negative economic effects of the pandemic, adding up job losses and reductions in sources of income, have fallen disproportionately on Americans with low sources of income. Focusing on the household source of income as a general measure of well-being, we show that unemployment insurance benefits almost completely offset the accumulation of household income source inequality that would otherwise have occurred in 2020 and 2021. We also take a look at the effects of the $600 accrued in weekly unemployment insurance benefits. invoices, available for part of 2020, for job search purposes. For Americans with incomes, the disincentive to seek higher unemployment insurance benefits was sometimes limited and weakest for Americans from low-income families. These effects suggest that pandemic-related UI expansions have boosted equity, but have had limited consequences on economic efficiency.
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