INDIANAPOLIS — As the expiration of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention national moratorium on evictions looms, thousands of Hoosiers could be forced out of their homes in a matter of days.
“I am isolating, confined in this apartment, trying to make ends meet,” Jennifer Morris said. “And it’s hard.”
Morris is not alone, as up to a quarter million people are behind on rent in our state, according to Prosperity Indiana, because of unemployment or lost hours due to the pandemic.
“I never, in my 53 years, never ever had an eviction. Never, never, never," Morris said. "Never struggled harder than I am right now. It’s heartbreaking.”
Morris was a personal driver before the pandemic hit.
“I am disabled and I’m a real bad diabetic," Morris said. "I was a driver delivering parts and stuff, which had me in the field. But my doctor didn’t want me interacting because I was high risk for the Covid."
She says she’s reached out to numerous resources for rental assistance help.
“Where I’m at, by Post Road between 38th and Shadeland, there’s no help out here,” Morris said.
She says she has nowhere else to turn.
When the CDC national moratorium expires at the end of the month, experts say, anywhere between 40,000-80,000 Hoosier households are at immediate risk of eviction.
If Congress does not release additional rent relief, the state will soon have to make some hard decisions to prevent thousands of Hoosiers from becoming homeless come January 1.
“We’ve heard about a plan that could provide $25 billion for rental assistance and that’s about a quarter of what we need to get through 2021,” says Andrew Bradley with Prosperity Indiana. “So if our Indiana senators act, Todd Young and Mike Braun can be champions on those bills, then that could really make a difference for at least 100,000 Hoosier families that are at risk of eviction.”
RESOURCES | Resources for Hoosiers facing eviction and homelessness
