Poverty Rates in Maryland
Inner Cities and Rural Farmlands Isolated from Rest of State
The poverty rate in Maryland is the 7th lowest in the United States with a poverty rate of 9.2%. This is slightly better than the poverty rate of Virginia, and slightly worse than Connecticut.
However, this low poverty rate means very little to the poor people living in Maryland, and this article is about them.
Where the Worst Poverty in Maryland Occurs
The poverty in Maryland is evenly spread for the most part. However, there are a few scattered regions in Maryland where the poverty rates reach critical levels (50% or more above the state average).
The counties where the poverty rate reaches a critical level are the following:
- Allegany (14.2%)
- Dorchester (13.9%)
- Somerset (19.7%)
The poverty rate also reaches critical levels in the following major cities (25,000 or more people):
- Baltimore (21.5%)
- Hagerstown (18.1%)
Though the poverty in Maryland is very evenly spread for the most part, the three counties in which the poverty rates are critical have population densities that are at least three times lower than the state average.
Each of the three counties have metropolitan or micropolitan areas within them; however, for the population density to be that far below the state average means that these counties must also include much more rural areas.
Why the Worst Poverty in Maryland Exists
Since the poverty in Maryland occurs in both rural areas and major cities, it is important to look at both cases separately.
In major cities like Baltimore and Hagerstown, people are completely reliant on the market for all of their most basic needs. These needs include things like shelter, food, utilities, education, and health care.
However, many times the wages earned by the poorest Americans in these areas will not raise enough to meet the higher cost of living. The end result is a class of working poor who simply can’t earn enough to sustain themselves without assistance.
In the more rural areas of Maryland, a different set of problems may lead to higher poverty rates.
In areas of rural Maryland, it can be much more difficult to connect every home with basic utilities such as electricity, water, and sewage systems.
Also, it can be much harder to reach education and health care, because the nearest school or hospital may be on the other side of a mountain with only a beat-down pickup truck on poorly maintained roads to get there.
People in rural areas of Maryland are also much more vulnerable to poverty in the event of a natural disaster, drought, health crisis, or harvest failure.
All of this aside, it is important to keep in mind that the reasons for poverty are as unique as the individuals who live through it. Though finding trends in a specific area is important, no generalization can account for everyone.
What is Being Done about Poverty in Maryland
One of the best ways to help fight poverty is to provide food to the poor so that they don’t have to choose between food and mortgage payments, or between food and medicine.
Organizations working to provide food to the needy in Maryland include the Maryland Food Bank and Capital Area Food Bank through America’s Second Harvest.
Other people working to help improve the lives of the working poor in Maryland are legislators who fought to raise the minimum wage.
A raise in the minimum wage will help the poorest Marylanders be better able to sustain themselves without public or private assistance.
References:
United States Census Bureau
Maryland Food Bank
