Administration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., 2022

May 19, 2022

America is back to work. The number of Americans who are forced to rely on unemployment insurance programs for their support fell to its lowest level in over 52 years. When I took office, there were nearly 20 million Americans on unemployment insurance to feed their families and keep a roof over their heads. Today, that number is about 1.3 million. That's millions of families moving from government support to earning a paycheck.

Today the percentage of people receiving unemployment insurance fell below 1 percent for the first time since 1969. This historic progress is the result of my economic plan to grow the economy from the bottom up and middle out.

Now, tackling inflation is my top economic priority. My plan to tackle inflation is to lower the costs that families face and lower the Federal deficit, and we make progress on this every day. The Federal budget deficit has already fallen by $1.5 trillion this year, and I have proposed a plan to reduce it even more by ensuring large corporations and the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes. Congressional Republicans have a different approach; their plan would raise taxes on working families and jeopardize programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act.

Categories: Statements by the President : Unemployment insurance claims.

Subjects: Budget, Federal : Deficit and national debt; Economy, national : Inflation; Employment and unemployment : Unemployment insurance; Health and medical care : Medicare and Medicaid; Health and medical care : Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act; Social Security and retirement : Social Security program; Taxation : Corporate tax rates; Taxation : Tax Code, reform.

DCPD Number: DCPD202200422.

1