The rate for adults aged 18-64 was down slightly from 10.9 percent in 1997, while the rate for seniors was statistically unchanged. Blacks and Hispanics suffer higher rates of poverty than whites and Asians. The poverty rate for blacks in 1998 was 26.1 percent, statistically unchanged from the year before. The poverty rate for Hispanics was 25.6 percent, down from 27.1 percent. The poverty rate for non-Hispanic whites was 8.2 percent, down from 8.6 percent.
Marriage tends to be associated with lower rates of poverty.
In 1998, the poverty rate for female-headed households with children and no husband present was 29.9 percent. By contrast, the poverty rate for married couples was just 5.3 percent. Historically, the South has suffered much higher rates of poverty than the rest of the country, but the difference has narrowed in recent years.