Inflation jumped 7.9% over the past year, sharpest spike since 1982

March 11, 2022

Inflation jumped 7.9% over the past year, it’s the sharpest spike since 1982, according to a report released Thursday by the Labor Department.

Bread, meat, eggs, milk, fruit, even coffee have all increased. But the question is why?

The inflation we are seeing today is a result of the last two years, according to Michael Lahr, a distinguished research professor in public policy at Rutgers University.

“I would say COVID-19 and labor shortages are the main things. And then we have other things like cereal prices– well that’s probably caused by the oil prices that went up last year,” said Lahr, who adds that the war on Ukraine is only exacerbating things.

6ABC Action News, March 11, 2022

Recent Posts

RAISE-25 Recap: Our Future With AI: Utopian or Dystopian?

Summary Hosted by the Master of Public Informatics (MPI) program, the final round of the second annual RAISE-25 Informatics – Data Science competition was held Friday, April 11, 2025 at the Bloustein School. The competition challenge focused on "Our Future With AI:...

Generative Artificial Intelligence and the Workforce

The proliferation of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) in the workplace, a type of artificial intelligence capable of generating new content, has fostered growing concerns about how deployment will impact work and workers. While the effects of GenAI on the...

Dr. Williams Studies Telemedicine for Behavioral Health

Improved Access to Behavioral Health Care for Patients in a Large New York City Behavioral Health Clinic by the Transition to Telemedicine Abstract Objective To examine the transition to telemental health within the behavioral health program of a large federally...

NJSDS Launches External Access Program

The New Jersey Statewide Data System (NJSDS) is excited to announce the launch of the NJSDS External Access program, which provides approved researchers the opportunity to access longitudinal administrative data from four New Jersey state agencies: New Jersey...

Rutgers MHA now ranked #28 by U.S. News and World Report

The Rutgers Master of Health Administration program, located at the Edward J. Bloustein School of Public Policy, continues its upward trend by jumping a few spots in the annual U.S. News and World Report rankings of Best Graduate Health Care Management Programs....