Poverty in USA

One in six Americans are now living below poverty line, the Census Bureau revealed in a report made published on Wednesday, reflecting the adverse impact of economic crisis/slowdown on common man.

"The  official poverty rate in 2010 was 15.1%, up from 14.3% in the year 09 of the whole population - the third consecutive annual increase in the poverty rate," Census Bureau revealed in its report.

"There were 46.2 million Americans in poverty pool  in 2010, up from 43.6 million in the year 09 - the fourth consecutive annual increase and the largest number in the 52 years of recent past for which poverty estimates have been published," it added.

These figures are contained in the report 'Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the country.

The US govt defines the poverty line as income of USD 22,314 a year for a family of four and USD 11,139 for an  individual.