WASHINGTON, March 14 (UPI) -- Government spending on U.S. federal benefits such as college aid, food stamps and health care has soared to record levels, a USA Today analysis shows.
The newspaper found of 25 major programs, enrollment increased an average of 17 percent from 2000 to 2005, while the nation's population grew 5 percent during that time.
Spending on the 25 social programs was $1.3 trillion in 2005, up an inflation-adjusted 22 percent since 2000 and accounted for more than half of federal spending.
The biggest expansion was with Medicaid, the health care program for the poor that added 15 million beneficiaries over five years to become the nation's largest entitlement program.
Robert Greenstein, head of the liberal Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, said the growth is due to a rise in the poverty rate from 11.3 percent in 2000 to 12.7 percent in 2004, the most recent year available.
