Washington D.C. - Real median household income in the United States rose by 1.1 percent between 2004 and 2005, reaching $46,326, according to a report released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. Meanwhile, the nation’s official poverty rate remained statistically unchanged at 12.6 percent. The percentage of people without health insurance coverage rose from 15.6 percent to 15.9 percent (46.6 million people).

These findings are contained in the Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States: 2005 [PDF] report. The report’s data were compiled from information collected in the 2006 Annual Social and Economic Supplement (ASEC) to the Current Population Survey (CPS).

Current Population Survey
The 2006 Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement shows the following results for the nation:

Income - Overview
Nationally, 2005 marked the first year since 1999 in which real median household income showed an annual increase.

Race and Hispanic Origin (Race data refer to people reporting a single race only.)

• Real median household income remained statistically unchanged between 2004 and 2005 for each of the race groups (whites, non-Hispanic whites, blacks and Asians) and for Hispanic households.
• Black households had the lowest median income in 2005 ($30,858) among race groups. Asian households had the highest median income ($61,094). The median income for non-Hispanic white households was $50,784. Median income for Hispanic households was $35,967.
• The three-year-average (2003 to 2005) real median income for American Indian and Alaska Native households was $33,627. The three-year-average median income for Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander households was $54,318. (Because of the relatively small populations of American Indians and Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, the sampling variability of their income data is larger than for the other racial groups and may cause single-year estimates to fluctuate more widely. To moderate these fluctuations in income, the Census Bureau uses 3-year-average medians when comparing the incomes of the American Indian and Alaska Native and the Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander populations with other racial groups.)

There were 7.7 million families in poverty in 2005, statistically unchanged from 2004. The poverty rate for families declined from 10.2 percent in 2004 to 9.9 percent in 2005. The poverty rate and the number living in poverty both declined for married-couple families (5.1 percent and 2.9 million in 2005, down from 5.5 percent and 3.2 million in 2004). However, the poverty rate and number in poverty showed no statistical change between 2004 and 2005 for female-householder-with-no-husband-present families (28.7 percent and 4.0 million) and for male-householder-with-no-wife-present families (13.0 percent and 669,000).

As defined by the Office of Management and Budget and updated for inflation using the Consumer Price Index, the average poverty threshold for a family of four in 2005 was $19,971; for a family of three, $15,577; for a family of two, $12,755; and for unrelated individuals, $9,973.

Race and Hispanic Origin (Race data refer to people reporting a single race only.)

• Poverty rates remained statistically unchanged for blacks (24.9 percent) and Hispanics (21.8 percent). The poverty rate decreased for non-Hispanic whites (8.3 percent in 2005, down from 8.7 percent in 2004) and increased for Asians (11.1 percent in 2005, up from 9.8 percent in 2004).
• The three-year average poverty rate for American Indians and Alaska Natives was 25.3 percent. The three-year average poverty rate for Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders was 12.2 percent. (Because of the relatively small populations of American Indians and Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders, the Census Bureau uses 3-year-average medians.)

Between 2004 and 2005, people covered by employment-based health insurance (174.8 million) declined from 59.8 percent to 59.5 percent.

While the number of people covered by government health programs increased between 2004 and 2005, from 79.4 million to 80.2 million, the percentage of people covered by government health insurance remained at 27.3 percent. There was no statistical difference in the number or percentage of people covered by Medicaid (38.1 million and 13.0 percent, respectively) between 2004 and 2005.

The proportion and number of uninsured children increased between 2004 and 2005, from 10.8 percent to 11.2 percent and from 7.9 million to 8.3 million, respectively.

Race and Hispanic Origin (Race data refer to those reporting a single race only.)

• The uninsured rate, as well as the number of uninsured, remained statistically unchanged from 2004 to 2005 for non-Hispanic whites (at 11.3 percent and 22.1 million) and for blacks (at 19.6 percent and 7.2 million). The rate for Asians increased to 17.9 percent in 2005, up from 16.5 percent in 2004. The number of uninsured Asians was 2.3 million, up from 2 million.
• The uninsured rate for Hispanics, who may be of any race, was 32.7 percent in 2005 — statistically unchanged from 2004. The number of uninsured Hispanics increased from 13.5 million to 14.1 million.
• Based on a three-year average (2003-2005), 29.9 percent of people who reported American Indian and Alaska Native as their race were without coverage. The three-year average for Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders was 21.8 percent.

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