US poverty declined last year as government aid offset job losses

The massive relief effort by the US government during the pandemic last year helped offset the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, The New York Times reported.

Poverty is defined by the government as less than $13,000 for an individual or $26,000 for a family of four.

The Census Bureau on Tuesday (14 September) reported that the percentage of Americans living below the poverty line dropped from 11.8 percent in 2019 to 9.1 percent in 2020, the lowest figure since records began in 1967.