The share of Americans’ income that comes from government benefit programs, like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, more than doubled over the last four decades, rising from 8 percent in 1969 to 18 percent in 2009. Check out the interactive visualization on New York Times.
1979
1989
1999
2009
In 2009, the government accounts for 17.6% of personal income. Government payments to individuals in more than 50 benefit programs, from food stamps to Medicare. One has to ask, where will be in another few years?