Economists Predict U.S. Poverty Will Reach Highest Rate Since 1960s

"The analysts’ estimates suggest that some 47 million people in the United States, or 1 in 6, were poor last year. An increase of one-tenth of a percentage point to 15.2 percent would tie the 1983 rate, the highest since 1965. The highest level on record was 22.4 percent in 1959, when the government began calculating poverty figures. ...

"Demographers also say poverty will remain above the prerecession level of 12.5 percent for many more years. Several predicted that peak poverty levels — 15 percent to 16 percent — will last at least until 2014, due to expiring unemployment benefits, a jobless rate persistently above 6 percent, and weak wage growth. 

"Analysts also believe that the poorest poor, defined as those at 50 percent or less of the poverty level, will remain near its peak level of 6.7 percent."

US poverty rate projected to hit highest level since ’60s (The Boston Globe)