Statement by Deborah Weinstein, Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs 

The Coalition on Human Needs is a nonpartisan organization that seeks to reduce poverty and increase opportunities for economic and health security for all Americans, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, age, or disability.  President Biden and his Administration have achieved historic advances towards meeting these vital needs.  We applaud his accomplishments and thank him for his continued service to the nation. 

President Biden is justly proud of the expansion of the Child Tax Credit, which cut child poverty nearly in half.  His Administration has also achieved long overdue increases in SNAP food assistance benefits, reduced premiums for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act marketplace plans and increased the numbers of people with health insurance, ramped up measures to combat racial discrimination in housing and in other areas, improved IRS services to taxpayers, including a successful pilot of free Direct File service, protected consumers from junk fees, implemented free or reduced price internet access for millions of low-income Americans, invested in environmental protections and infrastructure improvements with special attention to low-income communities, expanded legal status for certain immigrants, and began the work of reducing prescription drug prices. 

Of particular importance, President Biden steered the nation through the pandemic, implementing policies that protected people through vaccinations to nearly 8 in 10 adults, and emergency help to respond to crises in child care, health care, education, and unemployment.  These policies helped to dramatically shorten a deep recession and led to prolonged low unemployment overall, with recent above-inflation gains in income, and alongside an across-the-board commitment to reduce structural racism, there were near record reductions in unemployment among Black and brown people.   

This is just a partial list, but it is marked by special attention to people who need help the most.  President Biden has supported reducing income and wealth disparities by enforcement and policy proposals to require corporations and the ultra-wealthy to pay their fair share in taxes. 

The Coalition on Human Needs respects and appreciates President Biden’s achievements thus far. There is more work to do; we seek the continuation and expansion of these and other policies and will work with this and future Administrations to meet human needs.