On Tuesday, the Census Bureau released new data on income, poverty, and health insurance coverage nationwide, which showed some signs of improvement but also widening inequality. The data also doesn’t reflect changes from President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” and the harmful impacts it will have on Americans with low income.
The data showed that between 2024 and 2025 median household income increased 2.6% even after accounting for elevated levels of inflation, to $87,460. This was an improvement over 2024, where inflation had removed any gains compared to 2023. However, income levels for the 10% of Americans with the lowest incomes did not significantly change for the second year in a row, leaving them treading water but not getting ahead.
For workers, overall earnings after adjusting for inflation were the same as in 2024, but there were strong increases for women and people without a college degree, reflecting the continued strong labor market.
The official poverty measure ticked down slightly, falling from 10.7% of the population in poverty in 2024 to 10.2% in 2025. The more expansive supplemental poverty measure showed no change in 2025, with 13.1% of the population still below the poverty line.
At the state level, the Census Bureau publishes three-year estimates of the supplemental poverty rate, and by this measure Maine outperformed the nation in two respects:
- The supplemental poverty rate was lower than the official poverty rate, suggesting government support (counted in the supplemental rate) was helping to move more people out of poverty in Maine than nationally.
- Maine was the state with the smallest proportion of its population living below the supplemental poverty line at just 6.4%, or less than half the national rate.
The share of Americans without health insurance remained flat at 7.9% of the population.
While the 2025 data continued to show progress in some areas and is holding steady in others, it’s important for policymakers to recognize this does not reflect the recent Trump administration harms that risk pushing America and Maine backwards. The “One Big Beautiful Bill” will push millions of Americans off health care and food assistance and into poverty. The expiration of the enhanced tax credits for Affordable Care Act insurance plans will mean fewer people have health insurance coverage. And the war with Iran and continued imposition of tariffs will drive up inflation, eroding workers’ earnings.
“Maine showed that effective government support can reduce poverty,” said James Myall, senior economic policy analyst at the Maine Center for Economic Policy. “But for families with the lowest income, after two years without meaningful income gains for families and health coverage and food assistance about to get harder to reach, the ground they’re standing on will get a lot less stable.”
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