The Census Bureau reports that the number of people lacking health insurance rose to 46.3 million in 2008. That’s up from 45.7 million in 2007, due to a continuing erosion of employer-provided insurance. Still, the level remained just below the peak of 47 million who were uninsured in 2006, due to the growth of government insurance programs such as Medicaid for the poor. The nation’s poverty rate increased to 13.2%, up from 12.5% in 2007. That meant there were 39.8 million people living in poverty. It was the highest rate since 1997. The statistics released today cover the first full year of the current recession. The median household income declined slightly to $50,303.
Number of Americans without health insurance at 46.3 million ?
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