Report: Alabama ranks as 5th poorest state in U.S.

A report released today by 24/7 Wall Street shows that Alabama has gone from the 9th poorest state in the U.S. in 2010 to the 5th poorest state in 2011.

Across the nation, the median household income has dipped for the second year in a row. Alabama's median household income is $41,415, which is around $9,000 less than the national median of $50,502 for 2011.

Alabama's poverty rate remained at 19 percent, which is the same as last year, according to the report. The national poverty rate is 15.9 percent. Alabama's unemployment rate is the 18th highest in the nation at 9 percent.

But despite having a 19 percent poverty rate, only 14 percent of Alabama's population did not have health insurance, the 24/7 Wall St. report shows.

"It is likely that Alabama's cheap health care – the least expensive in the country for the fourth quarter of 2011 – resulted in more insured residents," the report stated.

With the exception of New Mexico and Oklahoma, all of the poorest states in the U.S. for 2011 are in the South. Mississippi ranked as the poorest state in both 2010 and 2011.

The top 10 poorest states for 2011, according to 24/7 Wall St., are as follows:

10-Oklahoma

9- South Carolina

8-New Mexico

7-Louisiana

6-Tennesse

5-Alabama

4-Kentucky

3- Arkansas

2 - West Virginia

1 - Mississippi

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