Poverty climbed in the U.S. for five months as the country headed into the 2020 election amid rising infections and bitter partisan divisions stood in the way of a new round of economic aid.
The poverty rate rose to 11.7 percent in November, up 2.4 percentage points since June, according to new data released Wednesday by researchers at Zhejiang University, the University of Chicago, and the University of Notre Dame.
The latest data show that the poverty rate rose in each month beginning in July. Before that the poverty rate had dropped down to record lows thanks to stimulus payment from the federal government issued in April and May, and the expansion of unemployment insurance eligibility and benefits.
The data come from a new poverty measure that the researches claim provides near-real-time poverty estimates using U.S. Census Bureau data.
The rise of 2.4 percentage points is extremely rapid by historical standard, the largest jump in a single year seen in government data going back 60 years.
Despite the rise, the poverty rate remains low by historical standards. Excluding this year’s very low rate, a poverty rate of 11.7 would be the lowest since 2001.
The increase in poverty in recent months was more noticeable for blacks, children, and those with a high school education or less, the researchers said. For blacks, poverty has risen by 3.1 percentage points since June. Poverty has also risen for those with a high school education or less, from 17.0 percent in June to 22.1 percent in November.
In November, however, the changes went the other way. The poverty rate for children fell while the rate for working-age adults and older Americans climbed. The poverty rate for whites rose and the poverty rate for blacks declined. The rate for those with some college education rose while those with less education saw the poverty rate fall.
The new data was first reported in the Washington Post.
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