As A Wise Woman* Once Said, “Money Changes Everything”

Hizzoner unveils his new plan to combat poverty — we’ll just buy it out:

In an unprecedented move to battle poverty, Mayor Bloomberg announced yesterday that the city plans to copy a program that has worked in developing countries — and pay poor people to make sounder choices that benefit society.

The program would pro vide $24 million the first year in privately raised funds to poor parents who keep their kids in school, to poor pregnant women who keep doctors’ appointments, and to others who do the right thing to escape poverty.

A range of grants is being explored, from $50 to $1,500.

“The stress of poverty often causes people to make decisions — to skip a doc tor’s appointment, or to ne glect other basic tasks that often only worsen their long-term prospects,” said the mayor, releasing a 47-page report of a poverty commission he appointed earlier this year.

“Conditional cash transfers give them an incentive to make sound decisions instead.”

. . .

“What we’re trying to do is to create the economic incentive so that people are engaging in good behavior,” Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs said. She described the impact in Mexico as “just phenomenal,” with sick days in schools down 40 percent for boys and 21 percent for girls.

The city’s program is to be developed over the next two months.

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