By Shelley Kofler, KERA News
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Dallas, TX – The U.S. Census Bureau says median income in Texas edged up slightly last year, to almost $45,000. But other Census Bureau information paints a disappointing picture in Texas. KERA's Shelley Kofler has more.
Once again, census numbers identify Texas as having the highest number of uninsured citizens in the country. About 20-percent of children and almost 30 percent of working aged adults lack benefits.
Frances Deviney is an analyst at the Center for Public Policy Priorities in Austin. She says the unfortunate, number-one ranking reflects the many Texas employers who provide no health insurance, and a history of low public funding in this state. Now, federal money for states may also be threatened.
Sound: (Deviney says the Texas legislature recently made changes that should allow more children in Texas to be served under the Children's Health Insurance Plan, known as CHIP. She worries, however, that the Bush administration will successfully prevent funding increases at the federal level and that federal funding for the program could actually decline. )
Census data also showed the rate of poverty in Texas remained unchanged at 16 percent, while the rate nationally dropped to just over 12 percent.
Shelley Kofler, KERA News