LANSING — A new report found that 68 percent of Michiganders and 60 percent of Americans are struggling to afford at least one of four basic needs. The report found that a third of Michiganders are “burdened or severely burdened” by the cost of food and a quarter are struggling to afford housing.

Americans’ economic struggles come as Donald Trump and Republicans have cut taxes for the top one percent, waged reckless foreign wars, cut healthcare and food security programs, and created unnecessary trade wars with allies. Michiganders are among those hit the hardest by Republicans’ agenda, with diesel prices hitting an all-time high, and tariffs costing Michigan households over $5,000. 

“Michiganders are struggling while Republicans cut taxes for billionaires. In the wealthiest country in the world, working people should not struggle to pay for basic necessities,” said Curtis Hertel, Chair of the Michigan Democratic Party. “Foruntately, voters will reject the GOP’s cost-raising agenda and elect Democrats who are fighting to make life affordable.” 

Read more below: 

Michigan Independent: 68% of Michiganders struggle to afford at least one basic need, new report says

• Sixty-eight percent of Michiganders are struggling to afford at least one of four basic needs — housing, food, healthcare, or childcare — according to a new report from the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality. 
• The Family Economic Well-Being Index, published on Sept. 24, shows that 31% of Michigan residents are burdened or severely burdened by food costs, 26% struggle to afford housing, 39% are burdened or severely burdened by healthcare costs, and 20% are struggling with childcare costs. Nationwide, 70% of Americans are finding it difficult to pay for at least one basic need, the new report says. 
• “For a long time, we have tended to think of affordability as a problem for people with the lowest incomes, but increasingly we are hearing stories from people at all income levels who are feeling squeezed by the cost of everyday essentials,” said Lelaine Bigelow, the executive director of the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality, which works to provide economic research to policymakers. 

###