"This is a
very significant finding," said Dr. Henry E. Simmons, president of the
National Coalition on Health Care. "This is not the poor and the
downtrodden any more. They have always had a tough time. This is moving
into the middle class."
The number of Americans without health insurance
increased for sixth straight year in 2006, to 47 million people. It was
44.8 million in 2005.
Among the wealthiest — households with incomes of
$75,000 or more — the number without insurance grew by 1.4 million, to
about 9.3 million. Among the poorest — households making less than
$25,000 — the number without insurance declined by about a half million.
The overall increase was fueled by a decline in
the share of workers covered by employer-provided health insurance, said
David Johnson, chief of the Census Bureau's Housing and Household
Economic Statistics Division.
The Census Bureau released its annual poverty,
income and health insurance numbers Tuesday, and there was good news in
the numbers.
The share of Americans living in poverty declined
for the first time since President Bush took office, to 12.3 percent.
And the median household income increased for the second straight year,
to $48,200.
"When we keep taxes low, spending in check, and
our economy open — conditions that empower businesses to create new jobs
— all Americans benefit," President Bush said in a statement.
The last significant decline in the poverty rate
came in 2000, during the Clinton administration, when it went from 11.9
percent to 11.3 percent.
The poverty rate increased every year for the next
four years, peaking at 12.7 percent in 2004. It was 12.6 percent in
2005, but Census officials said that change was statistically
insignificant.
The poverty level is the official measure used to
decide eligibility for federal health, housing, nutrition and child care
benefits. It differs by family size and makeup. For a family of four
with two children, for example, the poverty level is $20,444.
The poverty rate — the percentage of people living
below poverty — helps shape the debate on the health of the nation's
economy.
Democrats on Capitol Hill said the insurance
numbers justify spending more money for a popular government health
insurance program for children.
Both chambers of Congress recently passed bills
that would dramatically increase funding for the Children's Health
Insurance Program, known as SCHIP. The Bush administration, however,
opposes both measures saying they would result in people abandoning
private coverage for public coverage for children.
The share of Americans without health insurance
hit 15.8 percent last year, the highest percentage since 1998. In 2005,
15.3 percent were without insurance.
Bush said the growing number of people without
health insurance presents a challenge. "Containing costs and making
health insurance more affordable is the best way to reverse this
long-term trend," Bush said.
Several Democrats running for president said the
insurance numbers point to weaknesses in the nation's health care
system.
"These statistics show what most Americans know:
Tens of millions of our fellow citizens are completely left out of the
economic progress enjoyed by the individuals and corporations on the
very top," said Democrat John Edwards, who has made eradicating poverty
a centerpiece of his campaign. "We need truly universal health care and
a national effort to eliminate poverty."
Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton noted that there were
a lot fewer people without health insurance when she first addressed the
issue as first lady. In 1993, there were 39.7 million Americans without
health insurance, according to the Census Bureau.
"It is an even deeper outrage today," she said in
a statement.
Sen. Barack Obama issued a statement that said:
"We can keep making excuses for this or ignore it altogether, but as
long as these statistics exist they will always be a betrayal of the
ideals we hold as Americans."
Among the findings in the Census Bureau's report
on income and poverty:
Maryland led the country with a median household
income of $65,144. It was followed by New Jersey, Connecticut, Hawaii
and Massachusetts.
Mississippi had the lowest median income, at
$34,473. It was followed by West Virginia, Arkansas, Oklahoma and
Alabama.
Mississippi had the highest poverty rate, at 21.1
percent. It was followed by Louisiana, New Mexico, Arkansas and West
Virginia.
Maryland had the lowest poverty rate, at 7.8
percent. It was followed by New Hampshire, Connecticut, New Jersey and
Hawaii.
