While it is good news that the poverty rate declined and median household income increased compared to last year, when these numbers are compared to the bottom of the 2001 recession, the joy is somewhat tempered. Center on Budget and Policy Priorities has released a statement on the 2006 Poverty, Income, and Health Insurance figures highlighting the uneven distribution of gains of the current economic recovery. The new figures are the latest evidence that the economic growth of the past few years has been very uneven, with the gains concentrated among the highest-income Americans. Too many low- and middle-income families are not sharing in the gains. These figures are inconsistent with claims that the policies of recent years have produced an outstanding economic track record. The statement notes that compared to 2001, the beginning of the current recovery - the poverty rate remains above its nadir of 11.5%. In 2006, five years into an economic recovery, the poverty rate was 12.3%. The income figures are just as lackluster. In 2001, working age household (households headed by someone under the age of 65) real income was $1,300 higher the 2006 total of $54,726.