Nearly Half of U.S. Residents Live in Homes
Receiving Government Benefits in Q3 2008
Senior citizens programs, Social Security and
Medicare, are the giants of the benefit programs says Census Bureau
study; Medicaid close behind
April
15, 2010 - Approximately 45 percent of U.S. residents lived in
households in which at least one individual received government benefits
in the third quarter of 2008, according to data released by the U.S.
Census Bureau. These benefits came from a variety of programs, but
Social Security and Medicare are the giants among these programs.
According to the report, about 28.4 million
households, or 24 percent of the U.S. total, received means-tested
benefits - either cash or noncash - in an average month during the
quarter.
Medicaid (21.1 million), free or reduced-price
school meals (11.5 million) and food stamps (9.3 million) were the most
widely received such benefits. (Means-tested programs are those that
provide cash or services to people who meet a test of need based on
income and assets.)
However, it was two non-means-tested programs,
Social Security and Medicare, which affected the largest number of
households. There were 33.6 million receiving Social Security or
Railroad Retirement benefits and 30.8 million receiving benefits from
Medicare.
In keeping with the economic downturn,
participation rates for each means-tested program were on the upswing
between May and November 2008. The percentage of households receiving
any type of means-tested benefit climbed from 23.2 percent to 24.7
percent between May and November of that year, with the percentage
receiving food stamps increasing from 7.6 percent to 8.8 percent and the
share of those receiving Medicaid climbed from 17.5 percent to 18.5
percent.
The information comes from
Economic Characteristics of Households in the United States: Third
Quarter 2008 (pdf), which examines the roles of government-sponsored
benefit programs and the labor market during the recession.
Specifically, it presents data on average monthly income, participation
in government-sponsored social welfare or social insurance programs and
labor force activity during the period.
The data are from the 2008 Survey of Income and
Program Participation, a longitudinal survey that follows the same group
of individuals over time, interviewing them once every four months. The
interviews were conducted from September 2008 through December 2008;
monthly estimates for each of the four months prior to the interview are
available.
The statistics in this report are not to be
confused with and do not supersede the official income and poverty
estimates, released last September, collected from the Annual Social and
Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS) between
February and April 2009. Those numbers pertain to the entire 2008
calendar year.
Other highlights:
● Among the 67 percent of the working-age
population engaging in some labor force activity, median monthly
household cash income was $5,500; for those without labor force
activity, such as retired people, this income was $2,979.
● On average, about 143 million of the 157
million people in the labor force had a job the entire month. Such
individuals had an average median monthly household cash income of
$5,751. For those with a job only part of the month, it was $4,001,
while it was $2,510 for those without a job the entire month who were
looking for work or who were laid off.
● Noncash means-tested benefits went to 28.2
million households in an average month. The majority of these households
(54 percent) participated in two or more programs. A prevalent form of
multiple recipiency (at least 4.6 million households) was the
combination of food stamps and Medicaid coverage.
● Receiving means-tested government benefits
was significantly more common among households with unemployed members
or with no labor force participants than among those with job-holders
only.
● On average, about 1.8 million people who had
jobs the entire month spent a week or more laid off from them. Their
median monthly household cash income was $3,917, considerably less than
the $5,751 for people with jobs the entire month.
● When one or more members in the household had
a job and no member was unemployed, the average monthly household income
was $6,490. When at least one household member was unemployed, mean
household income dropped to $4,041. For households without members in
the labor force, average income was $2,255.
Note: These data were collected from September
through December 2008 in the Survey of Income and Program Participation.
As in all surveys, these data are subject to sampling and nonsampling
error. For further information on the source of the data and accuracy of
the estimates, including standard errors and confidence intervals, visit
<http://www.census.gov/sipp/sourceac/S&A08_W1(S&A-11).pdf>.
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April
15, 2010 - Approximately 45 percent of U.S. residents lived in
households in which at least one individual received government benefits
in the third quarter of 2008, according to data released by the U.S.
Census Bureau. These benefits came from a variety of programs, but
Social Security and Medicare are the giants among these programs.
