Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program, food stamps, child care subsidies and the earned income tax credit form the core work-support system for America's low-income working families.

Medicaid and the State Children's Health Insurance Program, food stamps, child care subsidies and the earned income tax credit form the core work-support system for America's low-income working families. Federal and state governments spent $131 billion on these programs in 2002, nearly 30 percent more than in 1996--mostly because health costs soared.

Yet, many low-income families do not receive help from the programs aimed at making work pay and easing the cost of living. Only 7 percent of working poor families with children (with incomes below 100 percent of the poverty level) receive all four work supports. Many more former welfare recipients receive the supports than those never on welfare, who may be less able to navigate the complex system--the Urban Institute