We are getting a closer look at how the pandemic is impacting rural America.
The numbers come from two reports, one from the USDA and the other from the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers studied the pandemic’s impact from mid-March through October.
They found:
The jobless rate in rural America reached 12.6 percent at the peak
It improved to 6 percent by fall
- One-half of rural Americans said that the pandemic had an adverse effect on their lives, whether it was mentally or financially
We know the pandemic has been rapidly spreading through rural America for months now, but only 25 percent said they had direct experience with the virus, whether it was themselves, a family member of a friend.
