Household Income, Pandemic-Related Income Loss, and the Probability of Anxiety and Depression

Abstract

We use data from the Household Pulse Survey that the US Census Bureau conducted from April 2020 to February 2021 to estimate the probability of symptoms of anxiety and depression among adult Americans. Lack of viable instruments prevent ruling out exogeneity, but the magnitude and strength of association between mental disease and, both, 2019 household income and pandemic-related employment income loss warrant serious attention. Our results stress the importance of policy support to the socially vulnerable in an economic emergency, including cash transfers such as those offered by the 2020 CARES Act or the 2021 America Rescue Plan.