Are rates of participation in government assistance programs rising or falling?
The last time the results of this survey were published — for 1996 through 1999 — they showed that 36 million people, or 13 percent of the nation’s residents, took part in one or more major means-tested, government assistance programs during each month, on average, in 1999. The programs included Medicaid, food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families or General Assistance (formerly known as Aid to Families with Dependent Children), Supplemental Security Income and Housing assistance. “It is important that those selected for the SIPP participate because the results from this survey will enable policy-makers to address a multitude of critical issues,” said James Holmes, director of the Census Bureau’s Atlanta regional office. “Among these are the prevalence of people with lapses in health-insurance coverage; the characteristics of people with disabilities; the presence of provisions for health-care costs in child support agreements; and whether more people enter or exit poverty du
