por ECROMGAR » Jue Sep 16, 2010 9:52 am
Associated Press
WASHINGTON—The number of people living in poverty has climbed to 14.3% of Americans, with the ranks of working-age poor reaching the highest level since at least 1965.
The Census Bureau on Thursday said about 43.6 million people, or one in seven, were in poverty last year, up from 39.8 million, or 13.2%, in 2008.
The number of people lacking health insurance rose to 50.7 million from 46.3 million, mostly because of the loss of employer-provided insurance during the recession. Congress passed a health overhaul earlier this year to extend coverage to more people.
The statistics cover President Barack Obama's first year in office, when unemployment climbed to 10% in the months after the financial meltdown.
The median household income was $49,777.