Australia; NSW; VIC; WA
Interviews with a small group of people in Victoria who inject drugs or use methamphetamine suggest that the extra social security payments and homelessness initiative during COVID-19 helped give them some temporary relief from chronic socioeconomic hardship. People who use illicit drugs are more likely to experience unemployment, homelessness, criminal justice involvement, and poorer health outcomes than the general community, yet little has been known about the socioeconomic impacts of the pandemic on their lives. The people interviewed reported being able to pay overdue household bills to avoid electricity or gas disconnections, having enough money to purchase petrol or nutritious food, and feeling like a “normal person” for the first time in their lives.
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