SECTION 1
CITYWIDE TRENDS IN INCOME POVERTY, MATERIAL HARDSHIP, AND HEALTH PROBLEMS IN NEW YORK CITY
HIGHLIGHTS
INCOME POVERTY
n The rising poverty rates between 2021 and 2022 coincided with the expiration of many pandemic-era policy reforms which had contributed to historically low poverty rates in 2021. n In 2022, government transfers and tax credits cut the adult poverty rate in New York City by 27% and the child poverty rate by 41%, keeping more than half a million adults and nearly 300,000 children above the poverty line. These effects are less substantial than those in 2021, however, when govern- ment transfers and tax credits cut the adult poverty rate by 45% and the child poverty rate by 68%. n 2022 saw notable increases in poverty among both adults and children in New York City, with the adult poverty rate rising from 18% to 23% and the child poverty rate from 15% to 25%.
MATERIAL HARDSHIP
n In 2022, 29% of adults in New York City experienced material hardship – marking a return to pre-pandemic levels after rates had fallen to 24% in 2021. n Increases in the share of children facing material hardship were also notable – rising from 26% to 31% between 2021 and 2022. n It is not only those living in poverty who struggle to make ends meet: material hardship is even more widespread than poverty.
HEALTH PROBLEMS AND PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS
n In 2022, 24% of New Yorkers experienced a health problem, defined as reporting poor health or having a work-limiting health condition, and a third (33%) faced either a health problem or serious psychological distress.
6 THE STATE OF POVERTY AND DISADVANTAGE IN NEW YORK CITY VOL. 6
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