U.S. Treasury mailed 150,000 paper checks worth $442 million

In a statement on Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury said it has sent 90 million direct payments worth about $242 billion to Americans from President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus stimulus package, with more payments to be distributed in coming weeks.

Most of the payments were sent by direct deposit to recipients’ bank accounts starting on Friday, the Treasury stated, and the first payment batches were now fully available to be spent. The Treasury said it also mailed out 150,000 paper checks worth $442 million.

As his first legislative priority on taking office, President Joe Biden signed a $1.9 trillion stimulus relief bill to overcome the year-long pandemic that has killed over 526,000 Americans and put millions out of work.