Census: US poverty rate rises to 15.1 percent; number of uninsured hits high of 49.9 million

[1776Forever]

Source: Associated Press reported in Canadian Free Press

WASHINGTON - The ranks of U.S. poor swelled to nearly 1 in 6 people last year, reaching a new high as long-term unemployment woes left millions of Americans struggling and out of work. The number of uninsured edged up to 49.9 million, the biggest in over two decades.

The Census Bureau's annual report released Tuesday offers a snapshot of the economic well-being of U.S. households for 2010, when joblessness hovered above 9 per cent for a second year. It comes at a politically sensitive time for President Barack Obama, who has acknowledged in the midst of his re-election fight that the unemployment rate could persist at high levels through next year.

The overall poverty rate climbed to 15.1 per cent, or 46.2 million, up from 14.3 per cent in 2009.



Read more: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/breakingnews/census-us-poverty-rate-rises-to-151-per-cent-number-of-uninsured-hits-high-of-499-million-129727943.html

[Kingofalldems]

1. Single Payer

[valerief]

14. +1 gazillion

[xchrom]

2. recommend

[1776Forever]

3. Odd - WP changed the byline - Go here to Canadian Free Press for article:

I changed this on my original report: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/business/breakingnews/census-us-poverty-rate-rises-to-151-per-cent-number-of-uninsured-hits-high-of-499-million-129727943.html

Census: US poverty rate rises to 15.1 per cent; number of uninsured hits high of 49.9 million
By: Hope Yen, The Associated Press

WASHINGTON - The ranks of U.S. poor swelled to nearly 1 in 6 people last year, reaching a new high as long-term unemployment woes left millions of Americans struggling and out of work. The number of uninsured edged up to 49.9 million, the biggest in over two decades.

The Census Bureau's annual report released Tuesday offers a snapshot of the economic well-being of U.S. households for 2010, when joblessness hovered above 9 per cent for a second year. It comes at a politically sensitive time for President Barack Obama, who has acknowledged in the midst of his re-election fight that the unemployment rate could persist at high levels through next year.

The overall poverty rate climbed to 15.1 per cent, or 46.2 million, up from 14.3 per cent in 2009.

(more at link)

[InkAddict]

4. Not odd - SOP - burying the bad news while remaining somewhat

transparent.

[RKP5637]

5. Recommend!!! n/t

[Overseas]

6. Sad K&R.

[ProSense]

7. Link to Census release

Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2010

<...>

Earnings

• In 2010, the earnings of women who worked full time, year-round were 77 percent of that for men working full time, year-round, not statistically different from the 2009 ratio. The 2010 real median earnings of these men and women were not different from the 2009 earnings.
  
  
• Since 2007, the number of men working full time, year-round with earnings decreased by 6.6 million and the number of corresponding women declined by 2.8 million.

Income Inequality

• Based on the Gini Index, the change in income inequality between 2009 and 2010 was not statistically significant, while the changes in shares of aggregate household income by quintiles showed a slight shift to more inequality. The Gini index was 0.469 in 2010. (The Gini index is a measure of household income inequality; zero represents perfect income equality and 1 perfect inequality.)

Poverty

• The poverty rate in 2010 was the highest since 1993 but was 7.3 percentage points lower than the poverty rate in 1959, the first year for which poverty estimates are available. Since 2007, the poverty rate has increased by 2.6 percentage points.
  
  
• In 2010, the family poverty rate and the number of families in poverty were 11.7 percent and 9.2 million, respectively, up from 11.1 percent and 8.8 million in 2009.
  
  
• The poverty rate and the number in poverty increased for both married-couple families (6.2 percent and 3.6 million in 2010 from 5.8 percent and 3.4 million in 2009) and female-householder-with-no-husband-present families (31.6 percent and 4.7 million in 2010 from 29.9 percent and 4.4 million in 2009). For families with a male householder no wife present, the poverty rate and the number in poverty were not statistically different from 2009 (15.8 percent and 880,000 in 2010).

<...>

Health Insurance Coverage

• The number of people with health insurance increased to 256.2 million in 2010 from 255.3 million in 2009. The percentage of people with health insurance was not statistically different from 2009.
  
  
• Between 2009 and 2010, the percentage of people covered by private health insurance declined from 64.5 percent to 64.0 percent, while the percentage covered by government health insurance increased from 30.6 percent to 31.0 percent. The percentage covered by employment-based health insurance declined from 56.1 percent to 55.3 percent.
  
  
• The percentage covered by Medicaid (15.9 percent) was not statistically different from 2009.
  
  
• In 2010, 9.8 percent of children under 18 (7.3 million) were without health insurance. Neither estimate is significantly different from the corresponding 2009 estimate.
  
  
• The uninsured rate for children in poverty (15.4 percent) was greater than the rate for all children (9.8 percent).
  
  
• In 2010, the uninsured rates decreased as household income increased from 26.9 percent for those in households with annual incomes less than $25,000 to 8.0 percent in households with incomes of $75,000 or more.

Interesting information.

[1776Forever]

24. Did I just wake up in the wrong century? This is so disappointing:( So very very sad! n/t

[butterfly77]

8. I guess we are suppose to be..

shocked and surprised as though a lot of us didn't already know. Many of those on tv and elsewhere only now pay attention because they see it in their own families.

Now, they are afraid it may be them,they didn't give a damn when many were saying what was going on throughout the bush years..

[1776Forever]

25. True those of us living this statistic knew as you said but this jump is newsworthy or should be!

[OhioChick]

9. Utterly Shameful n/t

[tonybgood]

10. but on the bright side

If all these people in poverty would just do what the Tea Party wants and DIE!!! then the unemployment problem and health care mess would be solved!!! Not to mention the budget deficit!!!

[bemildred]

11. Mission accomplished! nt

[ThomCat]

12. That's only the official poverty rate.

We all know they keep that number artificially low. How many people really think that if you earn $15,000 a year you're not poor. For an individual I believe that puts you just above the poverty line.

Yet, I think we would all agree that an individual living on $15,000 a year, or even $25,000 a year living most most parts of this country ;
can't afford insurance,
can't afford to go back to school,
can't afford to eat out in nice restaurants,
can't afford to travel and go on vacations,
can't afford to save money for retirement,
can't afford to save money for emergencies
can't afford to save money for major life expenses like buying a house or sending a child to college,
and is always one lost paycheck, one sickness, or one injury away from being homeless.

The way poverty is officially calculated has been politically manipulated, so that it doesn't include real costs that people must pay for. It doesn't have any real resemblance to reality, and it severely underestimates the number of people who are poor.

[kestrel91316]

13. Prediction: medically uninsured will reach 75 million+ within 3 years.

Of course, until it reaches 200 million we don't have a prayer of seeing single payer. Perhaps not even then, with the propensity for folks to vote against their own interests.

[alp227]

15. "People are poor because they're lazy" --heritage fndtn, Fox News, etc.

but really, there are plenty of people working jobs that pay so little they still have a hell of a life.

[totodeinhere]

16. I thought that the HCR bill that they passed was supposed to bring down the number of uninsured,

not raise it as has happened. That's why we need single payer or Medicare for all rather than that sham that passed. And if you are going to tell me that not all of the HCR bill has kicked in yet, please tell me how many more will die waiting for that to finally happen?

[Playinghardball]

17. Poverty rate hits 18-year high as median income falls

Source: MSNBC



The number of Americans who have fallen into poverty rose to 15.1 percent in 2010, the highest level in nearly two decades, the Census Bureau said Tuesday in a report.

The report, which showed the poverty rate rose for a third straight year as the economy struggles with a stumbling recovery and persistent high joblessness, said the number of poor Americans in 2010 was the largest in the 52 years that it has been publishing poverty estimates, according to Reuters.

There were 46.2 million people in poverty in 2010, up from 43.6 million in 2009 ─ the fourth consecutive annual increase in the figure.

In a report that covers the first full calendar year after the end of the Great Recession, the bureau also said real median income dropped for the third year in a row.



Read more: http://bottomline.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/09/13/7742437-poverty-rate-hits-18-year-high-as-median-income-falls?GT1=43001

[CountAllVotes]

18. the pukes should be happy

Mission accomplished eh? :puke:

[Bonhomme Richard]

19. It's their own fault. If they only worked harder.

I can just hear the repug/baggers now.

[kdmorris]

20. I'm sure that's only because they keep having babies they can't afford

It's not like more FAMILIES are in poverty... just that those that have been in poverty for years just keep having babies.

:sarcasm: (in case I need it)

[SoapBox]

21. ...'splain it Gov. "Helmet Hair" Perry.

Go ahead...tell us.

And then you can brag some more about all the government jobs created in your State of Hate, as well as all those part-time, temp, minimum wage jobs.

[Beavker]

22. I like that steady increase around the year 2000

When everything was wonderful and peachy! :sarcasm:

We should have bombed Iran, and eliminated all taxes for anyone making over 250k a year I guess.

[Javaman]

23. And climbing. nt