Government Aid Keeps Millions Of Americans Out Of Poverty [GRAPHIC]

Government Aid Keeps Millions Out Of Poverty [GRAPHIC]

Prevalent as poverty is in the United States, it'd be a lot worse without government aid.

As seen in the below infographic by the Center For American Progress, several government programs have had an enormous effect on millions of Americans, keeping them above the poverty line. Last year, 46.2 million, or 15.1 percent of the entire country, lived below the poverty line, according to a Census report released this week.

If it wasn't for Social Security, though, an additional 20.3 million people would be added to that total, the majority of them elderly, as noted by the Center For American Progress. A further 8.6 million Americans would have lived in poverty if it wasn't for the earned income tax credit and unemployment insurance, Think Progress notes.

The below infographic was created by the Center For American Progress:

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