U.S. Census report may not be adequate reflection of Minn. data, demographer says

According to a U.S. Census report release Wednesday, Minnesota's poverty rates and the rate of uninsured are under the national average. The report also says that household incomes in the state are rising. But the state demographer says the statistics aren't a good reflection of Minnesota because of the small sample size.

Author:
BMTN Staff
Updated:
Mar 8, 2018
Original:
Sep 12, 2012

The U.S. Census survey results for 2011 were released Wednesday and the Star Tribune reports Minnesotans might be worse off than before the last recession. Although the state's estimated 10 percent poverty rate and the uninsured rate of 9.2 percent are improvements from 2010, the figures are still within the Census' margins of error.

The Pioneer Press says nationally, the percentage of people without health coverage decreased in 2011 to 15.7 percent. Minnesota remains in a select group of only seven states with uninsured rates below 10 percent.

Susan Brower, the state's demographer, tells Pioneer Press the report's findings don't show any significant changes on state-level numbers because of a small survey sample size.

Brower also told MPR News that this discrepancy also applies to the data showing the state's median household income improved by 10 percent to $57,820 in 2011.