Basic Facts About Low-Income Children: Children under 18 Years, 2014.

This 2014 fact sheet on children living in low-income families in the United States begins by explaining that there are more than 72 million children under age 18 in the United States, and 44% live in low-income families and 21% live in poor families. Statistics are provided that indicate the percentage of children living in low-income families has been on the rise, increasing from 39% in 2008 to 44% in 2014, children are nearly twice as likely as adults 65 years and older to live in poor families, young children under age 6 years are the most likely to live in low-income families, followed by children age 6 through 11 years, and children age 12 through 17 years, white children comprise the largest share of all low-income children while Hispanics make up the largest share of poor children, Black, American Indian, and Hispanic children are disproportionately low-income and poor, higher levels of parental education, employed parents, and married parents decrease the likelihood that a child will live in a low-income or poor family, the majority of children in low-income families live in the South, and 8% of children in low-income families and 7% living in poor families do not have health insurance. 12 figures and 11 references.