US Poverty Rate Hits 11-Year High

First figures since recession reveal decline in incomes
Posted Sep 30, 2009 5:23 AM CDT
US Poverty Rate Hits 11-Year High
Michelle Jackson and her husband, Walter, hold their daughter Sakarra as they listen to a recruiter at a job fair in Philadelphia earlier this month.   (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

The share of Americans living in poverty soared to 13.2% last year, its highest level since 1997, according to new census data. Median household income also fell, to $50,303 from $52,163 the previous year. Latinos have suffered the most from the recession. Their median income dropped by 5.6%, while that of non-Latinos fell only 2.6%.
(More poverty stories.)

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