46.5M Americans lived in poverty in 2012— census

In this April 4, 2013, file photo, a group of boys walk past a partially collapsed row house in Baltimore. The nation’s poverty rate stood still at 15 percent in 2012, the sixth straight year that it has failed to improve. The Census Bureau reported Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2013, that 46.5 million Americans were living in poverty in 2012. AP PHOTO/PATRICK SEMANSKY

WASHINGTON—The number of people living on or below the poverty line in the United States remained unchanged in 2012 at 46.5 million, according to official figures released Tuesday.

That equals a poverty rate of 15 percent for the second consecutive year, the US Census Bureau said.

The official poverty line for a family of four is based on an annual household income of $23,492.

Meanwhile, the percentage of people without health insurance coverage dropped to 15.4 percent in 2012 from 15.8 percent a year earlier.

The number with health insurance rose to 263.2 million in 2012, compared to 260.2 million the previous year.

The average income for family households remained unchanged at $64,053. Incomes have dipped 8.3 percent since 2007, the year before the recession.