BLOOMBERG: Helicopter Money Won’t Ease Latin America’s Pandemic Pain

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onditional cash transfers leapfrog traditional welfare by whisking benefits directly to qualifying recipients, often through personalized magnetic cash cards. Eligible families are listed on a national household register, which is frequently updated. In Chile, Colombia and Brazil, these registries keep tabs on around 60% of families nationwide, said Armando Barrientos, a Chilean economist specializing in welfare and social assistance policy at the University of Manchester, England. Brazil’s pioneering Bolsa Familia cash transfer program even fights tuberculosis by speeding benefits to registered patients and keeping them committed to the rigorous multidrug therapies. “These systems are rules based, not discretionary, which discourages corruption. There’s ongoing improvement in implementation,” Barrientos said.