Not saying that you're making it at all but there is a very common error people make when looking at the poverty stats. "The official poverty definition uses m

Not saying that you're making it at all but there is a very common error people make when looking at the poverty stats. "The official poverty definition uses money income before taxes and does not include capital gains or noncash benefits (such as public housing, Medicaid, and food stamps)." (https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty/guidance/poverty-measures.html https://www.census.gov/topics/income-poverty/poverty/guidanc...) After these programs, the poverty rate is reduced by 53% (https://www.nber.org/papers/w24567.pdf https://www.nber.org/papers/w24567.pdf)