Poverty rate fell in The United States despite the pandemic

Last year even as the pandemic raged on, the poverty rate fell in The United States. Through a massive federal aid and relief system, the country was able to get above what is considered one of the greatest economic contractions to hit the world. Even though most people lost their jobs, the poverty rate seemed to dip. In order to determine whether the government aid provided is what helped alleviate poverty rate, the Census Bureau reported on Tuesday that before the relief measures started last year 11.8 percent of Americans were living below the poverty line as of 2019, this number fell to 9.1 percent since the federal benefits started. This number is also the lowest recorded since 1967. 

Poverty rose quickly after the previous recession, up to 16.1 percent, and did not go down, researchers believe that the federal benefits were pulled to early or not enough in this case. However, having said all that, the median household income fell to 2.9 percent last year. This decline reflects the pandemic's effect on jobs. 13.7 million fewer people worked in 2020 as compared to 2019.

Source: The New York Times