On Tuesday, the Census bureau released its most recent data on income and poverty in the U.S. The report showed that median household income climbed to $56,516, a 5.2 percent increase from 2014 and one of the largest one-year increases ever.
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Americans’ incomes jumped in 2015 by the most since the last recession and the poverty rate fell, signs of USA economic health that could potentially boost Democratic candidates this year. This marks the first time since 2007-the year before the Great Recession-that median household income has increased at all. However, accounting for inflation, 2015 median household income is about 2.4% lower than the median household income peak from 1999.
“Today’s report from the Census Bureau shows the remarkable progress that American families have made as the recovery continues to strengthen”, the White House said in a statement.
The proportion of Americans in poverty also fell previous year, to 13.5 percent from almost 14.8 percent. Find us on Facebook too!
Meanwhile, households outside of metro areas – that is, in rural areas or small towns – did not see a statistically significant change in median income. Bu only married families and families with a female householder experienced a curve both in the poverty rate, and the number in poverty decreased. “Income grew for households across the income distribution, with the fastest growth among lower- and middle-income households”.
The census report followed a US Department of Agriculture report last week showing that 12.7 percent of US households were food insecure in 2015, meaning they had difficulty at some time during the year providing enough food for all their members due to a lack of resources.
About 17 percent of those in Tulare County don’t have health insurance. According to a new report from the Census Bureau, American workers are doing better than they have in years, at least in terms of median income and the availability of health insurance.
Incomes increased for men and for women and across racial and ethnic groups. The state-level data come from the American Community Survey.
After years of stagnant wage growth in the wake of the recession, which started in December 2007, Americans are finally beginning to see a long-awaited increase in their salaries.
The data suggest incomes are getting a boost from job gains to help break out of the stagnancy that’s been a blemish on the seven-year US economic recovery.
Since the financial crisis of 2008, the number of people living in poverty in the United States has increased by more than 3.3 million.
ABC News reported in August that health care giant Aetna will substantially cut its participation in the plan by 2017.
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But House Republicans, who are pushing their own agenda to tackle poverty and other issues, rejected it. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Kevin Brady, noting that more than 43 million Americans were impoverished, called the findings “another disappointing confirmation” of the nation’s struggles. The poverty rate was down by more than a point, as was the percentage of Americans lacking health insurance.
