The Number of Americans living in povertyin response to the country's official definition, fell barely to about 36.8 million in 2023, the Census Bureau said on September 10, 2024. The data released also showed that the poverty rate declined barely, an alternate approach to measuring poverty, but increased as more people within the U.S. faced economic hardship.
The Conversation US asked Mark Rank, a Sociologist who studies poverty and economic inequalityto clarify the most recent numbers and share a few of his insights about poverty in America.
What are an important news?
I feel probably the most interesting aspect of this report is the several directions by which the 2 poverty measures developed in 2023. On the one hand, the official poverty measure fell from 11.5% in 2022 to 11.1% in 2023. At the identical time, supplementary poverty measurean alternate approach to measuring poverty introduced in 2011, rose from 12.4% last yr to 12.9% in 2023.
The official poverty rate fell because overall Household income rose barely in 2023 – even after accounting for inflation – in response to other census data. However, like many poverty experts, I imagine the supplemental poverty measure is a greater indicator of what is happening since it takes under consideration household expenditure in addition to tax credits and the impact of presidency programs on poverty reduction.
It seems that a significant reason the present supplemental poverty line is rising is because Social Security advantages and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program – also often called SNAP or “food stamps” – lifted fewer people out of poverty in 2023 than in 2022.
The additional poverty measure also increased because of this of private contributions medical costs be higher in 2023 than in 2022.
Are there more meaningful ways to measure poverty in America?
The Annual report of the Census Bureau provides only a snapshot of poverty from yr to yr. I feel estimating the long-term risk of impoverishment over the lifetime of the typical American is a more meaningful approach.
For this purpose, I conducted a study with a large nationally representative dataset by researchers on the University of Michigan who’ve observed the identical households yearly since 1968. Based on this evaluation, I even have concluded that a transparent majority of Americans will live in poverty for at the very least one yr of their adult lives.
About 58.5% of Americans will live below the official poverty line for at the very least one yr, between Age 20 and 75while 76% are either in poverty or living in poverty – meaning their income is below 150% of the poverty line.
Figures released within the Census Bureau's annual report show that only about one in nine Americans resides in poverty today. However, my research shows that three in 4 Americans will experience poverty or near poverty in some unspecified time in the future of their lives. The upshot is that poverty must be viewed as an “us” problem, not a “them” problem.
How does poverty within the United States compare to similar economies?
The United States has one in all the very best poverty rates amongst Western industrialized nations. Whether you take a look at working-age adults, children, people over 65, or the whole population, the United States is on the forefront by way of Extent and depth of poverty.
A key reason for that is that the federal government does much lower than its counterparts in lots of other countries to assist people escape poverty. US safety net is comparatively weak in terms of protecting Americans from economic poverty.
The result’s that the share of Americans living in poverty in any given yr is amongst the very best amongst comparable nations.
In addition, the extent of each Income and wealth inequality In the United States, poverty tends to be more extreme than in other high-income countries.
How do you interpret the long-term patterns of poverty rates within the United States?
The United States made significant progress in reducing poverty within the mid-Twentieth century. The poverty rate was 22.4% in 1959 to 11.1% in 1973.
This improvement is as a result of the robust economy of the Sixties and government initiatives often called the “War on Poverty.” Since 1973, nevertheless, the general poverty rate has hovered between 11 and 15 percent. It has tended to say no somewhat during times of economic growth, and has risen during times of economic stagnation and recession.
The official poverty rate of 11.1% in 2023 is identical because the poverty rate in 1973. The supplementary poverty rate, which shall be 12.9% in 2023, reflects the same lack of progress. It was first calculated in 2009 and was 15.1% on the time.
However, there are two major success stories.
First, older Americans are less more likely to experience poverty.
In 1959, 35.2% of individuals over 65 lived in poverty – the very best rate of all age groups. In 2023, only 9.7% of older Americans lived in povertybecause the official rate shows, and that was one in all the bottom for all age groups.
The most important reason for this decline was the Expansion of social security advantages and the introduction of the Medicare and Medicaid programsWithout these programs, poverty amongst older Americans would increase to an estimated 40%.
The other major success was that the share of US Children in poverty fell significantly in 2021 because of this of the expansion of the kid allowance and the Economic cushioning payments The federal government provided aid to all Americans starting in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked devastating economic havoc.
As a results of these and other measures The additional poverty rate amongst children fell by almost half from 9.7% in 2020 to five.2% in 2021. With the phasing out of those advantages, the kid poverty rate has returned to pre-pandemic levels. According to the Supplementary Poverty Measure, it rose to 13.7% in 2023 – the very best rate since 2018.
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