Nearly half of all
Americans lack economic security, meaning they live above the federal
poverty threshold but still do not have enough money to cover housing,
food, healthcare and other basic expenses, according to a survey of
government and industry data.
The survey, released on Tuesday by the advocacy group Wider
Opportunities for Women (WOW), found that 45 percent of U.S. residents
live in households that struggle to make ends meet.
That breaks down to 39 percent of all adults and 55 percent of all children, the group found.
"This is a wake-up call for Congress, for our state policy-makers,
really for all of us," said Donna Addkison, President and CEO of WOW.
"Nearly half of our nation's families cannot cover the costs of basic
expenses even when they do have a job. Under these conditions, cuts to
unemployment insurance ... and other programs families are relying on
right now would push them from crisis to catastrophe."