"Reduce the number of people in poverty by 50%" is a different goal than "Reduce the net poverty gap by 50%". A real headline can be that fewer people are in po

"Reduce the number of people in poverty by 50%" is a different goal than "Reduce the net poverty gap by 50%". A real headline can be that fewer people are in poverty than last year but the dollar sum of poverty is higher. Effective policy considers the true goal - people are living better - and takes into account Goodhart's law as possible. I would say OP is arguing that the latter goal metric is better for humans than the former, and I agree.