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What We Can Learn From Recent Reports About the Impact of the Expanded Child Tax Credit and the Ongoing Need for Outreach

Originally posted on Child Tax Credit Outreach.

The Impact of the Child Tax Credit

In August, Children’s HealthWatch, Revolutionary Healing, and the Kairos Center for Religions, Rights, and Social Justice released a report, “ ʻI didn’t have to worryʼ – How the Child Tax Credit Helped Families Catch Up on Rent and Improved Health.” The study relied on both quantitative and qualitative methods to demonstrate the positive impact the 2021 expanded CTC had on families and children. It found that families that received the 2021 advance CTC payments were 2.66 times more likely to catch up on rent payments after they had fallen behind earlier in the Covid pandemic. The study additionally found that the advance payments increased food security, improved parental mental health and helped families pay for child care.