Poverty rate holds steady at 12.5 percent

Census data say number of uninsured falls

WASHINGTON - The nation's poverty rate held steady as median household income edged up and the number of Americans without health insurance decreased by more than 1 million people last year, according to annual census data released yesterday.

The census report says that 37.3 million people - or 12.5 percent of the population - fell below the official federal poverty threshold in 2007, which is not statistically different from the 12.3 percent of 2006.

Meanwhile, the number of people without health insurance declined to 45.7 million from last year's record 47 million, the census report says. Census officials and health insurance advocates attributed the decrease in the number of uninsured to the popularity of government-sponsored health insurance, including Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program, or SCHIP.

The number of people under 65 insured by government-funded health insurance increased by more than 2 million to 48.6 million, according to officials at the University of Minnesota.

Despite the apparent good news, the new census report does not take into account the turmoil that has racked the nation's economy this year, leading to sharp spikes in joblessness and a reduction in hours for many employees. Also, while the indicators are positive over one year, the trends are less promising when viewed over a longer time frame.

"You have mixed news here mirroring the mixed news in the economy last year," said Rebecca Blank, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "But I think it is quite reasonable to say 2007 was a peak year. And still, median income is slightly below the 2000 level, poverty is higher, and child poverty is way up. You have a cycle here that was very sluggish."

The report highlights the nation's growing income inequality and persistent sluggishness of wages for typical Americans, which growing numbers of economists called one of the most troubling aspects of the new economy. Even as median household income rose 1.3 percent to $50,233 - the third consecutive increase - it still fell just short of the previous peak achieved in 2000, when inflation is factored in. Overall, the nation's top 1 percent of wage earners now hold 23 percent of total income, the highest level since 1928, according to the Economic Policy Institute, a research group.

Maryland remained the state with the nation's highest median household income in 2007, an estimated $68,080.

The figures showed that 707,000 residents in Massachusetts, or about 11 percent of the population, lived below the poverty line.