Public Support for Policies to Increase Housing Stability During the COVID-19 Pandemic

doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2021.05.006

. 2021 Dec;61(6):919-922.

doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.05.006. Epub 2021 Jun 24.

Public Support for Policies to Increase Housing Stability During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Craig Evan Pollack¹, Kathryn M Leifheit², Emma E McGinty³, Adam S Levine⁴, Colleen L Barry³, Sabriya L Linton⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland. Electronic address: cpollac2@jhmi.edu.
² Department of Health Policy and Management, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
³ Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
⁴ Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; SNF Agora Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
⁵ Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.

PMID: 34272137
PMCID: PMC8595088
DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.05.006

Public Support for Policies to Increase Housing Stability During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Craig Evan Pollack et al. Am J Prev Med. 2021 Dec.

. 2021 Dec;61(6):919-922.

doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.05.006. Epub 2021 Jun 24.

Authors

Craig Evan Pollack¹, Kathryn M Leifheit², Emma E McGinty³, Adam S Levine⁴, Colleen L Barry³, Sabriya L Linton⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland. Electronic address: cpollac2@jhmi.edu.
² Department of Health Policy and Management, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California.
³ Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
⁴ Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; SNF Agora Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.
⁵ Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland.

PMID: 34272137
PMCID: PMC8595088
DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2021.05.006

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated longstanding housing precarity. This study measures the public support for policies designed to increase housing stability and gauges whether support levels are associated with views about the role of evictions in COVID-19 transmission and the existence of racial inequities in the housing market.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey with a representative sample of U.S. adults in November 2020 assessed support for 4 housing policies. Logistic regression models estimated the adjusted levels of support for each policy, with separate models testing the association with whether or not a respondent recognized the role of evictions in increased COVID-19 transmission or acknowledged racial inequities in the housing market.

Results: Most U.S. adults supported policies aimed to increase housing stability during the COVID-19 pandemic, including extending moratoriums on evictions (63%) and foreclosures (67%) and increasing emergency rental assistance (63%). In total, 54% supported increased government spending on housing vouchers. Adults who agreed that averting eviction would slow COVID-19 transmission had higher support for housing stability policies, as did those who agreed that it was easier for White families to find affordable, high-quality housing than Black families.

Conclusions: Support for housing stability policies was strong among U.S. adults, particularly among those who agreed that preventing evictions slowed COVID-19 transmission and among those who acknowledged racial inequities in the housing market. Raising public awareness of the connections among unstable housing, infectious disease transmission, and racial inequity could broaden the support for policies to keep people in their homes through the pandemic.

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Figures

**Figure 1**
Unadjusted support for policies to promote housing security among a nationally representative of U.S. adults (Panel A) and predicted probabilities for support, stratified by whether or not a respondent recognized the role of eviction moratoriums in slowing COVID-19 transmission (Panel B) or acknowledged racial inequities in the housing market (Panel C), November 2020.

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References

1. Pollack CE, Leifheit KM, Linton SL. HealthAffairs; Bethesda, MD: Published August 4, 2020. When storms collide: evictions, COVID-19, and health equity.https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20200730.190964/full/ - DOI
1. McKay KL, Gilman S, Neumann Z. The Aspen Institute; Washington, DC: Published June 19, 2020. 20 million renters are at risk of eviction; policymakers must act now to mitigate widespread hardship.https://www.aspeninstitute.org/blog-posts/20-million-renters-are-at-risk...
1. Walensky RP. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Atlanta, GA: Published 2020. Temporary halt in residential evictions to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/more/pdf/CDC_Eviction_Extensio...
1. Leifheit KM, Linton SL, Raifman J, et al. Expiring eviction moratoriums and COVID-19 incidence and mortality. Am J Epidemiol. Online November 30, 2020 doi: 10.2139/ssrn.3739576. In press. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
1. Webb Hooper M, Nápoles AM, Pérez-Stable EJ. COVID-19 and racial/ethnic disparities. JAMA. 2020;323(24):2466–2467. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.8598. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

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[1] Pollack CE, Leifheit KM, Linton SL. HealthAffairs; Bethesda, MD: Published August 4, 2020. When storms collide: evictions, COVID-19, and health equity.https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20200730.190964/full/ - DOI

[2] Pollack CE, Leifheit KM, Linton SL. HealthAffairs; Bethesda, MD: Published August 4, 2020. When storms collide: evictions, COVID-19, and health equity.https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/hblog20200730.190964/full/ - DOI

[3] McKay KL, Gilman S, Neumann Z. The Aspen Institute; Washington, DC: Published June 19, 2020. 20 million renters are at risk of eviction; policymakers must act now to mitigate widespread hardship.https://www.aspeninstitute.org/blog-posts/20-million-renters-are-at-risk...

[4] McKay KL, Gilman S, Neumann Z. The Aspen Institute; Washington, DC: Published June 19, 2020. 20 million renters are at risk of eviction; policymakers must act now to mitigate widespread hardship.https://www.aspeninstitute.org/blog-posts/20-million-renters-are-at-risk...

[5] Walensky RP. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Atlanta, GA: Published 2020. Temporary halt in residential evictions to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/more/pdf/CDC_Eviction_Extensio...

[6] Walensky RP. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Atlanta, GA: Published 2020. Temporary halt in residential evictions to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/more/pdf/CDC_Eviction_Extensio...

[7] Leifheit KM, Linton SL, Raifman J, et al. Expiring eviction moratoriums and COVID-19 incidence and mortality. Am J Epidemiol. Online November 30, 2020 doi: 10.2139/ssrn.3739576. In press. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[8] Leifheit KM, Linton SL, Raifman J, et al. Expiring eviction moratoriums and COVID-19 incidence and mortality. Am J Epidemiol. Online November 30, 2020 doi: 10.2139/ssrn.3739576. In press. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[9] Webb Hooper M, Nápoles AM, Pérez-Stable EJ. COVID-19 and racial/ethnic disparities. JAMA. 2020;323(24):2466–2467. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.8598. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

[10] Webb Hooper M, Nápoles AM, Pérez-Stable EJ. COVID-19 and racial/ethnic disparities. JAMA. 2020;323(24):2466–2467. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.8598. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

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Public Support for Policies to Increase Housing Stability During the COVID-19 Pandemic

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Public Support for Policies to Increase Housing Stability During the COVID-19 Pandemic

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