I think it was very clear that everyone went into struggle mode at the onset of the pandemic. It was understood that the SBA was attempting to slow the loss of jobs and closures of corporations by providing funds to help keep business going. But I came across an article on The Business Journal. It states that of the $800 billion paid out through the SBA, only about 23% to 34% actually went directly to workers who would have lost their jobs.

The PPP largely accrued to households with higher income. About 66% to 77% did not go to paychecks but instead to business owners and shareholders. A large fraction of PPP loan dollars went to businesses that would have remained viable and retained their employees even without the PPP.

Unfortunately, this is not the focus of the SBA right now. They are currently addressing fraud within the PPP and the EIDL program.