President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus plan is quite ambitious compared to Congress’ $900 billion legislation that was set forth in December. Biden promised a larger and more inclusive package to aid struggling Americans in getting back on their feet during the pandemic. Despite unanimous Republican opposition, the House put the stimulus plan on fast track. The plan will deliver aid to individuals, families, businesses, health care providers and local governments in need.
It is without a doubt that Americans are struggling to deal with the pandemic — mentally, financially, and physically — and it’s not over yet.
A new, student-oriented stimulus plan may be just what America needs to help people struggling through the pandemic.
Many groups, most notably college students, were excluded from previous rollouts of the stimulus checks and left without financial help in 2020.
Independent adults are not the only Americans who have struggled throughout the pandemic. Adults over the age of 17 who support themselves but are still claimed as dependent — like many college students — did not receive the first or second stimulus checks. In the new year and under this new presidency, will college students finally be included in the COVID-19 relief plan? It seems so, as Biden’s new relief plan for COVID-19 includes a change to the stimulus check where adults over the age of 17 and still claimed as dependent are eligible to receive $1,400.
Members of the St. John’s community have been concerned about making ends meet throughout the pandemic, and have even felt “cheated” by the government when they didn’t receive a stimulus check.
“I think college students absolutely should be getting the stimulus check,” sophomore pharmacy major Raya Keir said. “Many college students live alone and work on their own but are considered dependents because their parents pay their tuition.”
Sophomore education major Dylan Tobie expressed his concerns as well.
“The stimulus should definitely be going to college students because we’re adults in the eyes of the government, so why wouldn’t we get the same benefits?” Tobie said.
Many college students have had an extremely tough time throughout the pandemic, and have been repeatedly ignored in government aid discussions. Many Americans have newly experienced what it feels like to be out of a job, but many students have been forced to balance their newly online education with an emphasized lack of financial stability. With Biden’s new COVID-19 relief plan, college students could be put at ease, free to navigate through the pandemic and college life with less of a struggle.
