Yellen: Stimulus was like a “vaccine” for the US economy.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told a conclave of U.S. mayors that government-approved economic aid was like a vaccine that prevented catastrophic economic damage like those seen at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

The “American Rescue Plan“$1.9 trillion boosted by President Joe Biden”acted as a vaccine for the US economy, protecting our economy from the possibility of new variants”, expressed Yellen in the conference of mayors in Washington.

“The protection was not total, but it was very strong,” Yellen said. “It prevented communities from suffering the most severe economic effects of omicron and delta.”

The mayors’ conference, led by Miami Mayor Francis X. Suarez, has as its central themes the application of aid in cities, ways to make the pandemic recovery more equitable, the reduction of armed violence, the reduction of homelessness and the fight against climate change.

Yellen spoke about the implementation by the Department of the Treasury of the fund for fiscal recovery at the local and state level, included in the American Rescue Plan, of US$ 350,000 million, which has provided direct fiscal assistance to states and local jurisdictions during the pandemic .

As of January 6, the Treasury Department had doled out more than $245 billion to enable communities to expand access to tests and vaccines, increase public sector hiring and provide child care, among other projects, according to the agency. . Since then it has expanded the eligibility criteria for projects under the fund.

“Back then, I think, we all thought that funding at the local and state level was important, that it was essential,” Yellen said.

“Looking back, it’s clear that this particular program—and ARP in general—turned out to be absolutely essential. It is possible to draw a straight line between PRA approval and our economic performance during delta and omicron”, declared the official.

He added that economic aid for pandemic recovery set the stage for the $1 trillion infrastructure package pushed by Biden, which he called “the biggest investment we’ve made since Eisenhower built the Interstate”.