New 2018 Missouri poverty report available now

The Missourians to End Poverty coalition announces the release of its new 2018 Missouri Poverty Report. This 20-page report is a comprehensive snapshot of poverty statistics in Missouri, updated and expanded from the recent 2016 edition of this biennial publication.

While Missouri has seen a decline in poverty since a 10-year high of 16.2% in 2012, 14% of Missourians still live in poverty. That’s 826,358 Missourians. And many of those people are children—260,867 children according to the US Census Bureau’s 2017 poverty data. This new report from the nonpartisan coalition is designed to educate and inform the public and policy makers across Missouri and the US. The report analyzes the five elements of poverty—economic and family security, education, food and nutrition, health, and housing and energy—and the impact each has on the well-being of individuals and families. Together these elements highlight poverty’s interconnected nature and the need for multi-dimensional solutions.

The 2018 Missouri Poverty Report shows not only data regarding factors that push people into poverty—affordable housing shortages, food insecurity, and increasing health care costs, among other things—but also data on what helps lift people out of poverty—strong support systems, safety net programs, organized community efforts, employment, and tax reform. This report pulls together publicly available data from sources such as US Census Bureau, USDA, National Center for Education Statistics, US Bureau of Labor Statistics and many others to paint a holistic picture of poverty. Data and statistics found within the report include:

• Missouri Poverty Rates by County

• Statewide Living Wage Averages for Missouri

• Educational Attainment in Missouri

• Unemployment and Earnings by Educational Attainment

• Food Insecurity, Food Affordability and Food Desert Data

• Medical Access Across Missouri

• Poverty and Life Expectancy

• Adverse Childhood Experiences and Outcomes

• Fair Market Rent, Housing Wages, and Housing Shortages

• Safety Net Programs Lifting Missourians Out of Poverty

• Longitudinal Benefits of Head Start Programs

• Positive Economic Impact of Safety Net Programs

All this and more is found within the pages of the 2018 Missouri Poverty Report, which is available for download at www.communityaction.org/poverty-reports/. This publication was produced in partnership with Missouri Community Action Network, which has convened Missourians to End Poverty since the coalition was formed in 2009. All Missourians are encouraged to download the report for personal education, local outreach, advocacy and informed decision making.

Missourians to End Poverty is a coalition of individuals, advocates, businesses, faith-based organizations, non-profits and government agencies that have come together around a shared vision—the vision of a just society of shared responsibility by individuals, communities, businesses, and government in which all individuals are respected, have opportunities to reach their full potential, and are embraced as participants in thriving, diverse, sustainable communities. The members of Missourians to End Poverty work toward this vision every day.

If you would like more information about Missourians to End Poverty’s 2018 Missouri Poverty Report, please contact Missouri Community Action Network’s Director of External Affairs and Missourians to End Poverty Chairperson, Jessica Hoey, at (573) 634-2969 ext. 31, or email jhoey@communityaction.org.