Data: Only 13 percent of "the poor" couldn't obtain medical care due to cost

(GoinsReport) - A 2011 report from the conservative Heritage Foundation shows that the picture of poverty in the United States isn't what it is painted to be by anti-poverty advocates, including access to healthcare.

Among the Census Bureau data compiled by the Heritage Foundation, the data on healthcare access shows that only 13 percent of poor households couldn't afford healthcare.

According to the report: "Although it is widely supposed that the poor cannot obtain medical care, only 13 percent of poor households report that a family member needed to go to the doctor or hospital at some point in the prior year but was unable to do so because the family could not afford the cost."

What makes a poor household varies by the family’s size.

In 2010, a family of four is considered a poor household if its counted cash income is less than $22,314 a year; a family of three, $17,374.

The counted cash income does not include the numerous cash benefits provided by the Federal government.

According to the Heritage report, which uses data from the Census Bureau’s annual poverty report, 46.2 million Americans were poor in 2010.

The Census Bureau told GoinsReport.com that what counts as unaffordable medical care varies.