Poverty rates down but household incomes remain steady

CEDAR RAPIDS - The poverty rate declined for the first time since 2006 as more workers transitioned from part-time to full-time work, according to new data released Tuesday by the U.S. Census Bureau. However, there was no statistically significant change in either the number of people living in poverty or household income.

The nation's poverty rate fell slightly to 14.5 percent in 2013, down from 15 percent in 2012. But there were 45.3 million people living at or below the poverty line in 2013, remaining stagnant for the third consecutive year.

Census officials said population growth was the reason the poverty rate dipped but the number of Americans in poverty remained the same.

The country's median household income sat at $51,939, according to the Census Bureau, which was not much of a change from the 2012 median of $51,759. This is the second year that the annual change was not statistically significant, following two consecutive annual declines.

Data show that the female-to-male earnings ratio has not seen an annual increase since 2007. The median earnings of women with full-time jobs was $39,157 - about 78 percent of what their male counterparts made, which sat at $50,033.

Meanwhile, there were about 42 million people without health insurance nationwide, a rate of about 13.4 percent. Those in poverty were far more likely to not have health insurance, the survey found.

Iowa had a lower rate of uninsured than the majority of states. There were 248,000 without health insurance, or 8.1 percent, in 2013, compared with states like Florida and Nevada, which had an uninsured rate of 20 percent and 20.7 percent, respectively.

Those aged 19 to 34 years old had the highest uninsured rate, the Census Bureau reported.

' Children under 18 years old: 7.6 percent

' Adults aged 19 to 25: 22.6 percent

' Adults aged 26 to 34: 23.5 percent

' Adults aged 35 to 44: 19 percent

' Adults aged 45 to 64: 14.5 percent

' Adults ages 65 and older: 1.6 percent

The Census Bureau conducted the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement between February and April 2014 and collected information about income and health insurance coverage during the 2013 calendar year.

The questionnaire is designed to give annual, national estimates of income, poverty and health insurance numbers and rates.

The Census Bureau generally releases detailed comparisons of year-to-year changes in health insurance. But the agency redesigned the Current Population Survey's health insurance section of the questionnaire to obtain more accurate estimates. This year's data will serve as a baseline for future years.

This year's data does not reflect how the Affordable Care Act has impacted uninsured rates.