Highlights of report on human rights violations in US
II. Absence of Basic Guarantee of Social and Economic Rights
1. The gap between rich and poor hit a 50-year high with the Gini Index of 0.485 in 2018
2. Inequality in income distribution is growing
The wealthiest 10% of households control nearly 75% of household net worth.
The bottom 50% saw essentially zero net gains in wealth from 1989 to 2018.
3. People at the bottom are living in distress
39.7 million people lived in poverty in 2018.
4 in 10 Americans are struggling to afford basics.
The US has refused to raise the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour for a decade.
4. The homeless are in a miserable situation
More than half a million lacked permanent shelter.
Nearly 8 million lost homes in the recession and its aftermath.
The homeownership rate fell to about 60% in 2016 from roughly 70% in 2004 for the middle class.
5. The public medical burden is overwhelming
15 million deferred purchasing prescription drugs due to the costs in 2019.
65 million gave up treatment because of the cost in 2019.
6. The number of people without health insurance soars
13.7% of US adults were health uninsured at the end of 2018.
Some 7 million US adults have likely lost or dropped coverage since 2016.
The number of children without health insurance increased in 2018 for the first time in more than a decade.
7. Drug abuse is getting worse
72,000 Americans died of drug overdoses - nearly 200 every day in 2017.
One in 16 high school seniors report daily use of marijuana.
8. Shrinking government financial aid leads to a surge in financial pressure on college students
Student loan debt was the second highest consumer debt category.
Borrowers collectively owed more than $1.5 trillion in student loan debt in 2019, hitting a record high.
