Reaching Out to the Other Virginia

By Steven L. Myers

Virginia is a wealthy state.  According to the US Census Bureau’s most recent income data, our median household income is higher than the median income in 42 other states.

Yet, despite Virginia’s relative wealth, there is another Virginia in which many people suffer desperate economic insecurity.  This insecurity is embedded in Virginians all over the state. The Virginians living in the “other” Virginia have many faces.  They are people of all ages, sexes, and races.  They are low-wage workers, children, senior citizens, victims of family violence, and people with disabilities--and their number is growing.

According to the Census Bureau, Virginia is one of only seven states where the increase in the poverty rate over the past year was statistically significant.  One out of every ten Virginians – more than 700,000 people - now live below the federal poverty line.  For a family of three, that is only $19,590 per year.

Many people living in poverty are workers.  Altogether, 375,000 full-time, year-round Virginia workers earn less than $20,000 per year; this includes many state workers.  Remarkably, these figures understate the dimensions of the problem.  A 2002 study concluded that an adult with two children living in Richmond requires income of at least $35,000 per year to meet basic needs.

Further, Virginia is one of twenty states in which the number and proportion of people without health insurance is growing.  Traditionally, most people obtain health insurance for themselves and their family as an employee benefit.  Unfortunately, both the declining availability of employment-based health insurance and Virginia’s low Medicaid income-eligibility limits (sixth lowest in the United States for a parent with two children) mean that healthcare and medications are beyond the reach of many people living in the “other” Virginia.  This can have very dire consequences.

Consider, for example, the case of “Robert,” a laborer in Western Tidewater.  Robert developed coronary disease in his mid-50s.  Unfortunately, he had no health insurance. To qualify for Medicaid, he first had to establish his eligibility for Social Security disability benefits, a process that took 14 months – a normal delay in the system.  While he waited for his social security benefits, he had limited access to doctors, some of whom agreed to treat him as a charity case.  However, he had no access to the prescription drugs he needed.  Robert died less than a week after his Social Security application was approved, but before he could receive the Medicaid card he so desperately needed.

Every year in the “other” Virginia, thousands of women and children are victims of domestic violence.  In one year, Virginia’s domestic violence network responded to more than 40,000 calls, had more than 13,000 face-to-face contacts and provided advocacy services to more than 7,500 people.  Housing is the need most frequently cited by victims of domestic violence, and the choices faced by women with limited financial resources who need shelter are heart wrenching.

“Michelle” lived with her children in an apartment in Richmond.  When the children’s father attacked her during a visit, Michelle called the police.  Shortly thereafter, she received an eviction notice for violation of a lease term prohibiting crimes in the apartment, even though in this case she was the victim of the crime.  Instances like this create terrible choices for people living in the “other” Virginia and often deter women from seeking the help they need.

Residents of the “other” Virginia also pay more for goods and services than the rest of us.  They pay fees to get their checks cashed, pay rent-to-own companies more than the true value of merchandise, pay more for groceries at neighborhood markets, pay more for credit, and often fall prey to predatory sales and lending practices.  This situation is intensified in inner-city and rural areas that often lack the retail outlets the rest of us take for granted.

Much work remains to be done if we are to achieve Governor Warner’s vision of “One Virginia, One Future.”  In addition to increased investment in crisis and subsistence programs, healthcare, and economic development, people living in the “other” Virginia desperately need jobs that pay a living wage.  They need improved access to banking and insurance services, and they need protection from the modern-day loan sharks who prey on the poor.

Those of us who enjoy Virginia’s high standard of living have a responsibility to understand and improve the lives of our neighbors living in this “other” Virginia.

Steven L. Myers, the Executive Director of the Virginia Poverty Law Center, works with the Virginia Alliance for Worker Justice, a coalition of labor, community and religious groups working to improve the lives of low-wage workers in Virginia.