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People Used COVID-19 Stimulus Cash to Pay Off Credit Card Debt

A new report shows that many Americans used COVID-19 relief funds to pay off their credit card debt rather than for essentials such as food and shelter.
People Used COVID-19 Stimulus Cash to Pay Off Credit Card Debt
A man shows off some of his credit cards as he pays for items at Lorenzo's Italian Market in Miami, Florida, on May 20, 2009. Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
11/1/2023|Updated: 11/2/2023
0:00

While it’s estimated that more than $280 billion in COVID-19 relief funding was stolen by fraudsters, a new report shows that many Americans used their stimulus checks to pay off their credit card debts.

The report, from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), revealed that the share of cardholders who paid off their credit card debt during the COVID-19 pandemic reached the highest in recent years.
Tom Ozimek
Tom Ozimek
Reporter
Tom Ozimek is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times. He has a broad background in journalism, deposit insurance, marketing and communications, and adult education.
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Related Topics
Fraud
Credit Cards
COVID-19 relief
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