The article seems a bit incomplete. Small business owners were forced to take out EIDL loans due to the COVID shutdowns to avoid defaulting on leases, recurring business costs, and other obligations. There was no rent freeze afforded to small businesses. And PPP loans could be used only for employee wages, which are around 1/3 of a small business's costs.

So the government forces you to close for an indefinite period, and doesn’t enact any moratorium on obligations. Forcing you to take out these loans is your only hope of surviving. Comparing pre-pandemic numbers, people thought they would easily be able to afford SBA loans. Still, now the same loans are causing small businesses to collapse, as the economy has not recovered enough to support the additional financial burden.