Low-Income New Yorkers Left Behind By COVID Recovery: Study

NEW YORK CITY — Low-income New Yorkers face a mounting risk of ending the coronavirus pandemic in worse shape than when it began, a new study warns.

The recovery from the pandemic is wildly uneven across the city, according to a COVID-19 Health Equity survey published this week by Public Health Solutions.

“As New York City starts to rebuild and recover from the devastating pandemic, low-income New Yorkers and other under resourced communities are once again at the risk of being left behind," said Lisa David, president and CEO of Public Health Solutions, in a statement.

"The survey confirms the appalling persistence of economic and racial inequities, which if left unaddressed, will thwart the recovery of many neighborhoods."

City officials have long warned the recovery could leave underserved New Yorkers behind — a fear back up by several studies, including this recent survey.

The survey found paying for food and housing accounted for 56 percent and 52 percent of low-income New Yorkers' top concerns, respectively, the study found.

Only 4 percent of low-income Black New Yorkers own their home, compared to 16 percent of white and 16 percent of Asian residents surveyed, the study found. The finding indicates that Black city dwellers could be disproportionately hit by recent rising rents.

Likewise, 42 percent of Queens residents are paying more for rent, compared to 26 percent in Brooklyn and Manhattan, and 12 percent in Staten Island, the study found.

The study also found that 44 percent of Bronx residents surveyed have applied for food stamp benefits in the past six months, compared to less than a third in other boroughs.

And, finally, the study warned that low COVID-19 vaccination rates among low-income and Black New Yorkers could leave them at greater risk now that many pandemic restrictions have been lifted.