Nearly half of Louisiana households struggle to make ends meet each month, according to the United Way’s latest ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) report. But new ALICE data that breaks down economic hardship at the parish level finds broad disparities between wealthier and poorer regions of the state. The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Margaret Delaney breaks down the statewide numbers: 

In 2023, household costs in every parish in Louisiana were above the Federal Poverty Level of $14,580 for a single adult and $30,000 for a family of four. Louisiana’s statewide average household cost in 2023 was $29,316 for a single adult and $69,672 for a family of four (this figure reflects a family of four without child care). The estimated household cost for a family of four with two children in child care was $81,432.

Delaney provides the lows and highs from the data: 

  • East Carroll Parish with 75% of 2,508 total households experiencing financial hardship.
  • Claiborne Parish with 73% of 5,019 total households experiencing financial hardship.
  • Madison Parish with 70% of 3,020 total households experiencing financial hardship. … 
  • Cameron Parish with 33% of 2,034 total households experiencing financial hardship.
  • West Baton Rouge Parish with 37% of 10,400 total households experiencing financial hardship.
  • Ascension Parish with 38% of 48,526 total households experiencing financial hardship.

Federal shutdown hinges on insurance affordability

Tax credits that make health coverage affordable through the federal marketplace are a key sticking point in negotiations to avert a federal government shutdown by Wednesday. The Washington Post’s Paige Winfield Cunningham explains how the current impasse over health care subsidies shows an original flaw with Obamacare: it wasn’t generous enough to increase affordability:

When Democrats were writing the health care law, they committed to paying for it largely with new taxes. That limited how much they were able to spend on subsidies, which were set at levels below what some lawmakers wanted. They hoped enough healthy people would enroll in the new marketplaces to keep premiums affordable even without subsidies. But that didn’t always play out. In 2017, insurers hiked premiums sold through the Healthcare.gov marketplace by an average of 25 percent. Premiums continued rising after that, but more slowly.

The enhanced premium tax credits were left out of the federal tax and spending megabill and are set to expire at the end of this year. Millions of Americans will see their premiums spike in the coming months if Congress fails to renew them: 

For example, a couple earning $30,000 would go from paying nothing for their annual premium to spending $1,107 for a mid-range insurance plan, according to a KFF analysis. A single person making $35,000 would have to pay $2,615, up from $1,033. People earning more than 400 percent of the federal poverty line — about $129,000 for a family of four — would no longer be eligible for any subsidies at all.

Millions could lose housing aid under new rules

Approximately 4 million people could lose federal housing aid under new rules under consideration by the Trump administration. ProPublica’s Jesse Coburn explains how the rules would allow local housing authorities to impose limits and work requirements for people using public housing:

Residents, including both parents in two-parent households, could be required to work up to 40 hours a week. The time limits could be as short as two years, after which residents would lose assistance. The time limits would apply to any family in which the household heads are not elderly or disabled, with few exceptions. Similarly, the work requirements would apply to residents ages 18 to 61 who are not disabled, pregnant, primary caretakers of young children, college students or in other exempted categories.

The new rules received pushback from housing advocates and researchers:

“It’s disguised as work requirements and term limits, but in reality it’s a way to strip families of their benefits,” said Deborah Thrope, deputy director of the National Housing Law Project, an advocacy group. “This is a huge departure from how the HUD programs have been run since their inception.” … There is little evidence that work requirements increase economic self-sufficiency among recipients of housing assistance, according to researchers at NYU. 

Louisiana ranks 49th on climate and health study

Louisiana ranks near the bottom of U.S. states, only ahead of Kentucky and West Virginia, on a new study measuring a range of health and environmental metrics. The Commonwealth Fund State Scorecard on Climate, Health, and Health Care analyzes the intersection between health care systems and the impacts of climate change. The Times-Picayune | Baton Rouge Advocate’s Josie Abugov reports:

Among the eight metrics that the researchers studied, Louisiana ranked worst on its health care facility flood risk. 10.5% of inpatient facility beds are in a “high-hazard flood zone,” according to data the researchers analyzed from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Only Florida, where 15% of the beds are at risk, exceeded Louisiana. … The state also ranked near the bottom of the country — number 46 — for health care facility risk for natural hazards in general, including hurricanes and heat waves, and energy efficiency. 

Number of the Day

71% – Percentage of American women who are concerned about paying medical bills, compared to 62% of men. (Source: 19th News/SurveyMonkey poll)