Update (6/24/2021): Dr. Rochelle Walensky, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, extended the evictions moratorium from June 30 until July 31.

There are multiple reports this week that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will extend the federal moratorium on renter evictions until the end of July. It’s currently set to expire on June 30, and was put in place last year to protect people who couldn’t pay their rent from being exposed to greater COVID risk if they lost their housing. Several states are extending their own eviction bans as well.

With unemployment still high and relief payments and jobless benefits running out, extending government eviction bans will lead to “a collective sigh of relief for renters who are struggling,” said Mary Cunningham, vice president for metropolitan housing and communities policy at the Urban Institute.

She said that 6 million to 7 million renters might not be able to pay their July rent nationwide. But, can just one more month really make a difference?

“You know, 31 days would be a huge help providing renters and property owners time and protection to access the $45 billion,” said Alieza Durana at the Princeton Eviction Lab. That’s money that Congress gave states for rental assistance, and is just now reaching landlords and tenants, Durana said.

The money can’t come soon enough, said Kim McCarty, executive director at Oregon’s Community Alliance of Tenants. “Many of our members have been paying their rent by putting essentials on their credit card, or by borrowing from family.”

She said many low-income tenants are at greater risk of losing their homes now than earlier in the pandemic.

With reporting from The Associated Press