UPDATEThe Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a new eviction moratorium on August 3 that will last until October 3. This comes after a previous halt on evictions was allowed to lapse on August 1.

UPDATE

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a new eviction moratorium on August 3 that will last until October 3. This comes after a previous halt on evictions was allowed to lapse on August 1.

Key TakeawaysBy the end of 2020, an estimated 30 to 40 million people in the U.S. could be evicted.In September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an order to halt evictions until December 31.According to research, eviction is related to a higher risk of depression, anxiety, and psychological stress.

Key Takeaways

By the end of 2020, an estimated 30 to 40 million people in the U.S. could be evicted.In September, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an order to halt evictions until December 31.According to research, eviction is related to a higher risk of depression, anxiety, and psychological stress.

Alexia Zakariya, a Pennsylvania stay-at-home mom of two kids, received a note on her door on October 28: “Notice To Terminate Tenancy.”

Like millions of Americans who have lost their jobs due to the pandemic, Zakariya and her husband are struggling to stay afloat and pay rent. “When COVID-19 hit, we started getting behind,” Zakariya tells Verywell. She says she owes back rent up to $9,100.

The order protects tenants who:

In addition to the above requirements, one of the following financial criteria must apply. To qualify for protection, tenants must:

Each state institutes its own policies to protect renters beyond these recent federal protections. In some states, those halts on evictions expired at the end of the summer, like in Pennsylvania where Zakariya is currently located.

Evictions can lead to the spread of COVID-19 when people are displaced and can no longer quarantine or isolate in their homes. Evictions can also potentially worsen existing mental health problems for many renters across the U.S.

What This Means For You

How Evictions Can Exacerbate COVID-19

The CDC says halting evictions can be a powerful public health measure utilized to help prevent the spread of disease. The moratorium was put in place because housing stability would allow people to isolate and quarantine, according to the CDC. This policy also makes it easier to implement stay-at-home directives from state and local authorities.

Without housing, individuals are more likely to become homeless and congregate in spaces with large crowds such as homeless shelters, putting others at higher risk for contracting COVID-19. As homelessness increases, shelters become overwhelmed and can’t implement safe social distancing or infection control measures. Meanwhile, unsheltered homelessness increases an individual’s likelihood of experiencing a severe case of COVID-19.

How Does Eviction Impact Mental Health and Wellbeing?

According to Ari Kalechstein, PhD, CEO and president of Executive Mental Health (EMH) in California and Nevada, the U.S. is in the midst of an economic downturn.

“People are struggling to make ends meet," Kalechstein tells Verywell. “They are struggling to pay their rent, a mortgage. Housing instability is associated with mental health problems.”

The unemployment rate reached 14.7% in April, and the annual poverty rate is projected to reach 10.9% in 2020.

Despite the CDC’s moratorium guidelines, Zakariya’s landlord moved forward with the eviction. Zakariya says the prospect of losing her home has worsened her mental health.

“I already have depression, anxiety, and mental health issues. I was in a mental hospital twice,” Zakariya says. “I just wasn’t in a good headspace.

As a result, she’s stopped attending her college classes.

Research shows she’s not alone. Being evicted or losing the legal right to your home is related to higher risks of depression, anxiety, and psychological distress.

Eviction can cause a higher risk for mental health disorders because it leads to a lack of control over key aspects of daily living and feelings of insecurity, isolation, and embarrassment.

Stressors from eviction and foreclosure can also disrupt familial relationships. “It’s been causing me and my husband to argue with all this stress,” Zakariya says.

According toMichael Brodsky, MD, L.A. Care Health Plan’s medical director for behavioral health and social services in Los Angeles, eviction should be considered a traumatic and stress-inducing experience. “Eviction takes a while. There is a summons process and the court date," Brodsky tells Verywell. “It can cause a prolonged period of intense stress.”

What Can You Do if You Are Facing Eviction?

How to Support Those Experiencing Eviction

Kalechstein suggests that altering policies could be the way forward to support individuals experiencing eviction. “It’s really incumbent upon our policymakers, politicians, the president to understand that eviction is the catalyst for so many detrimental outcomes in our society," Kalechstein says. “To the extent that we can step in, create the policies to help people get back on their feet.

“Communities where people can find safe and affordable housing [benefit] all of us,” Brodsky says. “Not only because it’s good for the individuals who are housed, but it’s good for public health, for epidemiology, and for the economy as a whole.”

The information in this article is current as of the date listed, which means newer information may be available when you read this. For the most recent updates on COVID-19, visit ourcoronavirus news page.

4 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.The Aspen Institute.The COVID-19 Eviction Crisis: an Estimate 30-40 Million People in America Are at Risk.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.HHS/CDC Temporary Halt In Residential Evictions To Prevent The Further Spread of COVID-19.U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of the Assistant Secretary of Planning and Evaluation.Predictions of Poverty and Program Eligibility During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Vásquez-Vera H, Palència L, Magna I, Mena C, Neira J, Borrell C.The threat of home eviction and its effects on health through the equity lens: A systematic review.Soc Sci Med. 2017;175:199-208. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.01.010

4 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.The Aspen Institute.The COVID-19 Eviction Crisis: an Estimate 30-40 Million People in America Are at Risk.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.HHS/CDC Temporary Halt In Residential Evictions To Prevent The Further Spread of COVID-19.U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of the Assistant Secretary of Planning and Evaluation.Predictions of Poverty and Program Eligibility During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Vásquez-Vera H, Palència L, Magna I, Mena C, Neira J, Borrell C.The threat of home eviction and its effects on health through the equity lens: A systematic review.Soc Sci Med. 2017;175:199-208. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.01.010

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

The Aspen Institute.The COVID-19 Eviction Crisis: an Estimate 30-40 Million People in America Are at Risk.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.HHS/CDC Temporary Halt In Residential Evictions To Prevent The Further Spread of COVID-19.U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of the Assistant Secretary of Planning and Evaluation.Predictions of Poverty and Program Eligibility During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Vásquez-Vera H, Palència L, Magna I, Mena C, Neira J, Borrell C.The threat of home eviction and its effects on health through the equity lens: A systematic review.Soc Sci Med. 2017;175:199-208. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.01.010

The Aspen Institute.The COVID-19 Eviction Crisis: an Estimate 30-40 Million People in America Are at Risk.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.HHS/CDC Temporary Halt In Residential Evictions To Prevent The Further Spread of COVID-19.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of the Assistant Secretary of Planning and Evaluation.Predictions of Poverty and Program Eligibility During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Vásquez-Vera H, Palència L, Magna I, Mena C, Neira J, Borrell C.The threat of home eviction and its effects on health through the equity lens: A systematic review.Soc Sci Med. 2017;175:199-208. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2017.01.010

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