Poverty and income essentially unchanged

Maryland's poverty rate and median household income were essentially unchanged in 2012, according to new data from the American Community Survey.

• 2012 MD Poverty Rate: 10.3 percent
• 2012 MD Median Household Income: $71,122

The poverty rate has steadily increased since the beginning of the Great Recession, from 8.1 percent in 2008 to its current peak. This mirrors the story in most of the rest of the country, as poverty remains high despite the economic recovery. I suspect this graph has something to do with it.

Maryland continues to have the highest median household income of any state at more than $71,000 (though we also know that 35 percent of Maryland households make less than $50,000). The state's median household income is about $1,000 more (in 2012 dollars) than it was in 2000.

Our neighbors to the south actually saw a decline in median household income, so much so that Virginia is now about $1,000 below (in 2012 dollars) their 2000 level. Virginia's poverty rate is also higher, at 11.7 percent in 2012.

The Week Ahead

Last week we blogged about Maryland's showing in the Census Bureau's State and Local Government Finance Summary for 2011.

Also last week, the Maryland Insurance Commissioner released the premium rates for the individual health care plans to be sold through the state's insurance exchange in October. The premiums are much lower than originally estimated and are among the lowest of the states who so far have released cost information for their exchange options.

For the week of July 29th through August 4th:

• On Monday, July 29th, the Alcoholic Beverages Article Review Committee meets to continue the review of special venue licenses at 5pm  in the Judiciary Training Room at 2009F Commerce Park Drive in Annapolis.
• On Tuesday, July 30th, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will publish the monthly Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment figures for June 2013.
• Also on Tuesday, the Council for the Procurement of Health, Education, and Social Services meets at 1:30 pm in room 241 of the House Office Building at 6 Bladen Street in Annapolis. The meeting subject is state procurement.
• Later on Tuesday, the Maryland Health Care Commission Center for Information Services and Analysis will be holding its third meeting of the Performance Practitioner Measurement Work Group from 3pm to 5pm at the Maryland Health Care Commission building at 4160 Patterson Avenue in Baltimore.
• On Wednesday, July 31, the Capital Debt Affordability Committee gathers at 1:30pm in the Assembly Room (114-116) at the Goldstein Treasury Building on 80 Calvert Street in Annapolis to conduct a legislative review and to examine the size and condition of tax-supported debt.
• Later on Wednesday, the Workgroup on Access to Habilitative Services Benefits meets from 2pm-4pm in the Maryland Insurance Administration Hearing Room on the 24th floor of St. Paul Plaza at 200 St. Paul Place in Baltimore. 
• On Friday, August 2, BLS will issue its Employment Situation report for July.

More MDers employed than before Great Recession

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released state annual average employment figures for 2012 today. Maryland's annual average unemployment rate was 6.8 percent, half a percentage point lower than the previous year. This was significantly lower than the US unemployment rate of 8.1 percent.

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There were also more employed persons in Maryland in 2012 than there were prior to the recession. In 2008 employed Marylanders peaked at 2.89 million. Last year BLS found that there were 2.91 million employed Marylanders.

However, the state's employment to population ratio for those over 16 was still lower than it was in 2007. That year, the employment ratio was 65.2 percent. By 2010 the ratio had fallen to just 61.6 percent. In the past two years it has risen to 63.2 percent, but there is still ground to be made up.

Health insurance coverage up in 2011 but poverty, median income unchanged

The Census Bureau released the 2011 American Community Survey today. The ACS is the primary resource for demographic data at the state, county, local, and sub-local level.

Some Maryland highlights:

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• Median household income in the state was unchanged (no statistical difference with 2010) at $70,004 in 2011. Once again, Maryland has the highest median income in the nation. Nationwide, the median household income is $50,502.
• Maryland's poverty rate was also essentially unchanged, at 10.1 percent. The national poverty rate was 15.9 percent.
• Health insurance coverage among younger Marylanders 18-25 jumped 6.7 percentage points between 2009 and 2011, to 81.7 percent. The coverage rate for this population was significantly higher than the national coverage rate for the same age group of 71.8 percent (up 3.6 percentage points). This growth in coverage is partially attributable to the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act provision allowing children under 26 to remain on their parent's policy.

Of course, there was enormous variation across Maryland in 2011 in each of these categories. Median household income was as low as $38,502 in Allegany County and as high as $98,953 in Howard County. Poverty rates ranged between 4.2 percent in Calvert County all the way up to 25.1 percent in Baltimore City. And health insurance coverage for Marylanders 18-24 (note slight variance due to data availability from statewide age range) varied between 86.4 percent in Wicomico County and 93.9 percent in Montgomery County.

The Week Ahead

Last week we blogged about the release of national data about poverty, and previewed this week's release of the American Community Survey. And in case you missed it, Neil Bergsman appeared in the Examiner last Saturday discussing our new brief on Question 7, expanded gambling.

Tuesday, September 18th

• Joint Committee on Access to Mental Health Services receives briefings on mental health parity, federal healthcare reform, the Mental Health Collaborative between the Departments of Health and Mental Hygiene and of Public Safety and Correctional Services, and integrated care. 1pm in the Joint Hearing Room, Department of Legislative Services, 90 State Circle, Annapolis.
• Commission to Study Campaign Finance Law meets. 3pm in room 130, House Office Building, Annapolis.
• Community Services Reimbursement Rate meets to approve the 2012 Annual report and other business. 6-8pm in the conference room of the Maryland Association of Community Services, 8835 Columbia 100 Parkway, Unit P, Columbia.
• Maryland Health Quality and Cost Council meets to discuss reducing hospital readmissions. 1-3pm in conference room L-1 of the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, 301 W. Preston Street, Baltimore.

Wednesday, September 19th

• Joint Committee on Children, Youth, and Families meets to welcome the new Superintendent of Schools and receive an update on charter schools. 10am in room 130, House Office Building, Annapolis.
• Joint Committee on Health Care Delivery and Financing meets to discuss Medicaid long-term care issues. 1pm in room 240, House Office Building, Annapolis.
• Joint Committee on Welfare Reform receives an update on the state's Family Investment Program and other welfare-related topics. 10am in room 120, House Office Building, Annapolis.
• Board of Public Works meets. 10am in the Governor's Reception Room on the second floor of the State House.
• Workgroup on Access to Habilitative Services Benefits meets. 9-11am in the Maryland Insurance Administration hearing room, 24th Floor, St. Paul Plaza, 200 St. Paul Place, Baltimore.

Thursday, September 20th

• Senate Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee visits farms in Frederick County. 8:15am to 5:30 pm starting at the Maryland Department of Agriculture, 50 Harry S Truman Parkway, Annapolis.
• Maryland Health Care Commission meets. 1pm in conference room 100, Maryland Health Care Commission, 4160 Patterson Avenue, Baltimore.
• Maryland Medicaid Advisory Committee meets. 1-3pm in the Department of Health to and Mental Hygiene Lobby Level Conference Room (L-3), 201 W. Preston Street, Baltimore. 
• Census Bureau releases 2011 single-year estimates from the American Community Survey. This is the main source of detailed demographic data for Maryland.The Census Bureau will release 3 and 5 year estimates later in the year, which will allow us to study smaller geographies and populations.

Friday, September 21st 

• Bureau of Labor Statistics releases state-level employment figures for August. Maryland's unemployment rate rose slightly in July, to 7 percent. 

U.S. poverty rate stable as number of uninsured fell

The Census Bureau just released data on poverty, income, and health insurance coverage in 2011. The data is from the Current Population Survey (CPS). According to the report, median household income declined, the poverty rate was not statistically different from the previous year and the percentage of people without health insurance coverage decreased.

The national poverty rate was 15 percent in 2011, with 46.2 million Americans living under the poverty line. The top 5 percent of wage earners saw their incomes rise between 2010 and 2011, while incomes fell for the other 95 percent.

Unlike the last ten years, private health insurance coverage remained steady nationwide. The provisions of the Affordable Care Act allowing young adults to remain on their parents insurance until age 26 seem to be responsible. Medicaid enrollment growth has offset some-but not all- of the losses in private health insurance coverage over the last decade. The program continued to grow in 2011 in response to the slow economic recovery. Combined with a stable private insurance pool, the share of uninsured Americans fell.

Maryland’s average poverty rate between 2010 and 2011 was 10.1% (in the CPS two-year averages are more accurate at the state level). That’s up 2.8 percentage points compared to the average in 2000-2001. This means on average 583,000 Marylanders were in poverty during the last two years. That’s 583,000 too many. Sadly, there were even more Marylanders without health insurance in 2010-2011 (an average of more than 758,000 uninsured).

MBTPI and its partners continue to advocate for policies and programs that assist Marylanders living in or near poverty. More detailed Maryland-specific data will be released next Thursday by the US Census based on the American Community Survey.

The Week Ahead

There are only a couple of events this week, but a number of national economic data releases.

Tuesday, August 21nd

• Workgroup on Lead Liability Protection for Rental Property meets. 10am to noon Maryland Insurance Administration in the Maryland Insurance Administration Hearing Room on the 24th Floor of 200 St. Paul Place, Baltimore.
• Workgroup on Access to Habilitative Services Benefits meets. 2-4pm in the Maryland Insurance Administration Hearing Room on the 24th Floor of 200 St. Paul Place, Baltimore.
• Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) releases data about the summer youth labor force.

Wednesday, August 22nd

• Board of Public Works meets. 10am in the Governor's Reception Room on the second floor of the state house in Annapolis.

Thursday, August 23th

• Maryland Nonprofits offers Streamlining Your Marketing Through Content Strategy. This is a training program in the Silver Spring office. For more information and to register, check out their events page. 
• BLS releases monthly data about mass layoffs.
• Census Bureau releases national and regional data about new home sales. The data - the number of new single-family houses sold and for sale, median and average prices, the number of houses sold and for sale by stage of construction, and other statistics - are from the Survey of Construction (SOC), which is partially funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. 

Friday, August 24th

• BLS releases data about worker displacement. 
• Census also releases the Advance Report on Durable Goods Manufacturers' Shipments, Inventories and Orders. The Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories, and Orders survey provides monthly statistical data on economic conditions in the domestic manufacturing sector. The survey measures current industrial activity and provides an indication of future business trends.