Of all the ways that governments can try to help people, cash transfers can seem like one of the most straightforward. Their popularity has been growing: Over the past decade, dozens of American cities have launched cash-transfer pilots. During the coronavirus pandemic, governments worldwide dramatically expanded their own programs' reach. And as AI reshapes work, the idea of guaranteed income'a specific kind of recurring, no-strings-attached cash payment'is moving into the mainstream. Yet while the provision of cash has saved many lives in dozens of low- and middle-income countries, it has seemingly produced only modest health gains in the United States. Guaranteed-income pilots also haven't delivered the dramatic health improvements associated with cash-transfer programs elsewhere. Why does cash save lives in Tanzania but barely move the needle in Texas' From our work studying cash-transfer programs across 37 countries, we've come to see a consistent logic behind why cash succeeds...
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