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mellowtiggerLeave it to government to make it hard to understand what poverty is. http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/faq.shtml
Poverty seems to be defined at the federal level as $1,127 in gross (pre-tax) wages per month for a single adult.
If I earn 100% or less, then I am eligible for food stamps in my local county.
If I earn 200% or less, then I am eligible in Minnesota for the state health insurance program.
U.S. federal minimum wage increased today to $7.25/hour. Although poverty guidelines are supposed to be based on consumer price index, it seems conceptually that minimum wage would be the appropriate way to reflect what is the minimum amount of money that a single adult needs to "get by" with food , shelter, and clothing (but not transportation or medicine). If minimum wage really is linked to this concept, then hopefully that means the increased minimum wage will cause the poverty guideline to also increase after September 30th when it's due for its annual review. That would be good news for me.
I am barely squeaking by above the poverty level, so I can't get food stamps today. Officially, I only work 20 hours each week. I used to be paid more than twice (barely) the minimum wage, so I was earning a little more than a full-time person could at minimum wage. With today's federal increase in minimum wage, I'm now earning less than an equivalent full-time, minimum-wage job would pay. Hopefully that means that today I'm now in poverty. Yay! :/
Poverty (if the guidelines change after the September 30th review) would mean that I could get food stamps to pay for food, and that would free up the $50/month I'd need to pay for the Minnesota health insurance. I can't afford over $500/year for state health insurance right now because I still need to get out of debt. Doing that before the end of 2010 requires that I dump a significant percentage of my monthly income into paying down my debt balance.
All this talk of a national health care plan still leaves me thinking that Washington bureaucrats really have no idea what life is like being poor, which is where 40% of Americans spend some of their time during any given decade. I already qualify for health insurance that would cost me (on their sliding scale) only $50/month. I can't afford that much right now. Unless the national plan will cost me less than $50/month, then it's still beyond my ability to use it.
UPDATE
p.s. My dollar figure at top is wrong. The current federal "poverty guideline" is $902.50/month for a single adult. Eligibility criteria for different programs are then defined as various multiples (125%, 150%, or 185%) of that amount. That's the case for food stamps. (902.50 * 1.25 = $1128) The state of Minnesota happens to double the food stamp requirement in order for a person to become eligible for getting the state-offered health care.
Poverty seems to be defined at the federal level as $1,127 in gross (pre-tax) wages per month for a single adult.
If I earn 100% or less, then I am eligible for food stamps in my local county.
If I earn 200% or less, then I am eligible in Minnesota for the state health insurance program.
U.S. federal minimum wage increased today to $7.25/hour. Although poverty guidelines are supposed to be based on consumer price index, it seems conceptually that minimum wage would be the appropriate way to reflect what is the minimum amount of money that a single adult needs to "get by" with food , shelter, and clothing (but not transportation or medicine). If minimum wage really is linked to this concept, then hopefully that means the increased minimum wage will cause the poverty guideline to also increase after September 30th when it's due for its annual review. That would be good news for me.
I am barely squeaking by above the poverty level, so I can't get food stamps today. Officially, I only work 20 hours each week. I used to be paid more than twice (barely) the minimum wage, so I was earning a little more than a full-time person could at minimum wage. With today's federal increase in minimum wage, I'm now earning less than an equivalent full-time, minimum-wage job would pay. Hopefully that means that today I'm now in poverty. Yay! :/
Poverty (if the guidelines change after the September 30th review) would mean that I could get food stamps to pay for food, and that would free up the $50/month I'd need to pay for the Minnesota health insurance. I can't afford over $500/year for state health insurance right now because I still need to get out of debt. Doing that before the end of 2010 requires that I dump a significant percentage of my monthly income into paying down my debt balance.
All this talk of a national health care plan still leaves me thinking that Washington bureaucrats really have no idea what life is like being poor, which is where 40% of Americans spend some of their time during any given decade. I already qualify for health insurance that would cost me (on their sliding scale) only $50/month. I can't afford that much right now. Unless the national plan will cost me less than $50/month, then it's still beyond my ability to use it.
UPDATE
p.s. My dollar figure at top is wrong. The current federal "poverty guideline" is $902.50/month for a single adult. Eligibility criteria for different programs are then defined as various multiples (125%, 150%, or 185%) of that amount. That's the case for food stamps. (902.50 * 1.25 = $1128) The state of Minnesota happens to double the food stamp requirement in order for a person to become eligible for getting the state-offered health care.