The poverty rate in the United States climbed to 15.1 percent last year as the number of impoverished Americans swelled to a record 46.2 millon, Reuters quoted the U.S. government as saying on Tuesday. In a report that underscores the daunting economic challenges facing President Barack Obama and Congress, the Census Bureau said median income fell 2.3 percent from 2009 to 2010 while the number of Americans without health insurance hovered near the 50 million mark.
