John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
Among all government transfer programs, Medicare was the second largest contributor. Social Security was the largest, totaling $21.19 billion, equating to $4,176 per capita and making up 35% of total transfers.
Medicaid was the third largest contributor in Alabama in 2022, accounting for $7.59 billion, averaging $1,496 per capita, and represented 12.5% of transfers in the state. Income Maintenance transfers provided another $7.49 billion, averaging $1,476 per capita and comprising 12.4% of government support, making them the smallest contributors.
Statewide, including all transfer types, government transfer payments totaled $60.5 billion, and accounted for 23.4% of residents’ total income, with an average of $11,924 per resident.
Government transfer payments are non-repayable funds provided by federal, state, or local governments to support individuals in need. These payments aim to stabilize economic conditions and provide financial support during hardships. Key programs include Social Security transfers (retirement benefits), Medicare transfers (healthcare for seniors), Medicaid transfers (healthcare for low-income individuals), and income maintenance transfers (financial assistance for basic needs).
With 17.9% of the population aged 65 and older, Alabama has a significant demand for programs like Social Security and Medicare. The total per capita income in Alabama, excluding government transfers was $38,992.3, which is noticeably below the county's total income of $50,916, emphasizing the role of government transfers in overall income.
When comparing 2022 to the previous year, Alabama saw an increase in its Medicare transfer dependency by 0.2%, reflecting both rising transfer amounts and stagnating or insufficient other sources of income.
Government transfers have long been a modest financial safety net, historically comprising only a small fraction of Americans' income. However, since the 1970s—sometimes dubbed the “Great Transfer-mation”—dependency has surged from 8.2% (or $2,022 per capita in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars) in 1970 to 17.6% (or $11,542 per capita) in 2022 nationwide. In Alabama, reliance on government transfers has similarly increased from 9.6% (or $1,736 per capita) in 1970 to 23.4% (or $11,924 per capita) in 2022, reflecting broader national trends.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | Rank | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson County | 1 | 17.8% | 16.8% | 6.1% | 4.7% | 2.5% | 2.4% | $11,783 |
| Mobile County | 2 | 26.5% | 17.4% | 8.6% | 6.6% | 3.9% | 3.9% | $12,602 |
| Madison County | 3 | 16.3% | 15.8% | 5.7% | 4% | 1.5% | 1.5% | $9,979 |
| Baldwin County | 4 | 20.9% | 21.7% | 8.7% | 5.8% | 1.6% | 1.6% | $11,878 |
| Montgomery County | 5 | 25.2% | 16.2% | 7.6% | 5.2% | 3.5% | 4.4% | $12,410 |
| Tuscaloosa County | 6 | 22.4% | 14% | 7.7% | 5.6% | 2.9% | 2.9% | $9,251 |
| Shelby County | 7 | 13.2% | 16.9% | 5.9% | 3.8% | 0.7% | 1% | $8,891 |
| Calhoun County | 8 | 31.3% | 18.5% | 10.3% | 8.5% | 4% | 3.8% | $13,328 |
| Etowah County | 9 | 34.2% | 19.7% | 11.3% | 9.6% | 5.3% | 3.8% | $14,686 |
| Lee County | 10 | 17.9% | 13.4% | 6.4% | 3.9% | 1.5% | 2.3% | $8,351 |
| Houston County | 11 | 26.3% | 18.7% | 8.7% | 6.8% | 3.6% | 3.5% | $13,458 |
| Morgan County | 12 | 24.8% | 18.1% | 9.5% | 6.2% | 3.3% | 2.9% | $11,472 |
| Marshall County | 13 | 25.2% | 17.1% | 8.7% | 6.6% | 3.4% | 3.3% | $11,561 |
| Lauderdale County | 14 | 26.5% | 20.6% | 10.6% | 6.9% | 2.9% | 2.5% | $11,933 |
| Cullman County | 15 | 24% | 19.1% | 9% | 6.8% | 2.8% | 2.3% | $11,797 |
| Limestone County | 16 | 17.8% | 15.7% | 6.6% | 4.5% | 1.4% | 1.6% | $9,620 |
| Talladega County | 17 | 31.9% | 19.6% | 11.4% | 8.5% | 4.6% | 4.1% | $13,150 |
| St. Clair County | 18 | 23.1% | 17.9% | 8.7% | 6% | 3.1% | 2.4% | $11,095 |
| Elmore County | 19 | 23.4% | 16.6% | 8.4% | 5.8% | 2.2% | 2.4% | $11,461 |
| Walker County | 20 | 32% | 19.9% | 11.5% | 8.9% | 4.8% | 3.4% | $14,939 |
| DeKalb County | 21 | 30.1% | 17.8% | 10.2% | 7.5% | 4.7% | 4.2% | $12,186 |
| Russell County | 22 | 34.8% | 15.6% | 10.1% | 6.9% | 3.2% | 5.2% | $13,388 |
| Colbert County | 23 | 29.2% | 20.6% | 11.1% | 7.8% | 3.2% | 3% | $12,846 |
| Coffee County | 24 | 25.2% | 17.2% | 7.6% | 5.3% | 3% | 2.7% | $12,806 |
| Jackson County | 25 | 29.7% | 21.1% | 11.5% | 8.5% | 3.4% | 3.2% | $12,862 |
| Dale County | 26 | 30.2% | 18.2% | 9.3% | 6.8% | 4% | 4.1% | $13,262 |
| Autauga County | 27 | 22.1% | 16.3% | 7.6% | 4.9% | 2.5% | 2.6% | $10,892 |
| Blount County | 28 | 24.3% | 19% | 9.7% | 6.1% | 3% | 2.7% | $10,628 |
| Dallas County | 29 | 40.7% | 20.5% | 11.1% | 9.9% | 7.4% | 8.1% | $17,007 |
| Tallapoosa County | 30 | 30% | 23.6% | 11.4% | 7.6% | 3.9% | 3.5% | $14,615 |
| Chilton County | 31 | 28.3% | 17.3% | 9.8% | 7.7% | 3.8% | 3.7% | $11,939 |
| Covington County | 32 | 34.8% | 22.3% | 11.8% | 9.7% | 4.9% | 4.1% | $14,471 |
| Escambia County | 33 | 33.7% | 18.8% | 11.8% | 9.2% | 4.2% | 4.9% | $13,084 |
| Chambers County | 34 | 35.4% | 20.6% | 12.8% | 9.1% | 4.7% | 5% | $13,769 |
| Lawrence County | 35 | 30.8% | 19% | 11.6% | 9.2% | 3.5% | 3.7% | $12,792 |
| Pike County | 36 | 26.3% | 15.7% | 7.7% | 6% | 3.8% | 3.9% | $12,283 |
| Franklin County | 37 | 28.2% | 17.4% | 9.4% | 7.7% | 4.4% | 3.8% | $11,853 |
| Geneva County | 38 | 33.7% | 21% | 11.2% | 8.7% | 4.7% | 4.2% | $13,910 |
| Cherokee County | 39 | 31.9% | 24.6% | 12.8% | 8.7% | 3.9% | 3.1% | $14,328 |
| Barbour County | 40 | 36.1% | 20.3% | 11.8% | 9.7% | 5.7% | 5.4% | $14,648 |
| Clarke County | 41 | 34.4% | 20.7% | 12.2% | 9.1% | 4.6% | 5% | $15,554 |
| Marion County | 42 | 28.2% | 21.4% | 10.7% | 6.4% | 4% | 3.9% | $11,935 |
| Winston County | 43 | 31.5% | 22% | 11% | 9.6% | 4.2% | 3.5% | $13,797 |
| Randolph County | 44 | 33.7% | 21.3% | 11.8% | 8.9% | 4.2% | 4.6% | $14,338 |
| Marengo County | 45 | 34.2% | 20.6% | 11.5% | 8.7% | 5.6% | 5% | $15,981 |
| Monroe County | 46 | 36.5% | 21.7% | 12.8% | 9.6% | 5.3% | 4.8% | $15,019 |
| Butler County | 47 | 31.7% | 21.5% | 10.2% | 7.8% | 4.9% | 5.1% | $14,893 |
| Pickens County | 48 | 34.2% | 19.6% | 11.3% | 9.6% | 4.9% | 4.5% | $14,606 |
| Fayette County | 49 | 39.7% | 21.8% | 13.4% | 12.6% | 6% | 4.3% | $16,692 |
| Bibb County | 50 | 32.3% | 17.8% | 11.2% | 9.5% | 4.5% | 4% | $12,124 |
| Henry County | 51 | 28.2% | 23.9% | 10.3% | 8.2% | 3.4% | 2.9% | $14,682 |
| Macon County | 52 | 36% | 21.4% | 11.3% | 7.9% | 4.8% | 5.6% | $13,726 |
| Hale County | 53 | 37.5% | 20.4% | 11.4% | 10% | 6.1% | 5.9% | $16,189 |
| Washington County | 54 | 34% | 20.9% | 13.1% | 9.3% | 4.1% | 4.1% | $14,857 |
| Choctaw County | 55 | 35.4% | 24.2% | 12.9% | 10.2% | 4.3% | 4.4% | $16,436 |
| Lamar County | 56 | 37.3% | 22.4% | 13.4% | 9.9% | 5.8% | 4.3% | $14,604 |
| Crenshaw County | 57 | 30.7% | 19.9% | 10.4% | 7.6% | 4.7% | 4.3% | $14,683 |
| Conecuh County | 58 | 42% | 25% | 13.9% | 10.3% | 6.1% | 5.9% | $16,955 |
| Cleburne County | 59 | 27.2% | 19.6% | 10.1% | 7.2% | 3.8% | 3.5% | $12,036 |
| Wilcox County | 60 | 46% | 22.5% | 14.2% | 10.7% | 8.2% | 9.2% | $18,348 |
| Clay County | 61 | 32.4% | 21.3% | 11.8% | 8.9% | 4.5% | 3.6% | $12,907 |
| Sumter County | 62 | 38.7% | 19.9% | 11.7% | 9.1% | 5.6% | 6.7% | $14,896 |
| Lowndes County | 63 | 34.8% | 20.8% | 10.8% | 7.9% | 5.4% | 6.8% | $16,211 |
| Perry County | 64 | 47.6% | 21.9% | 12.8% | 10.4% | 10.2% | 9.9% | $18,237 |
| Coosa County | 65 | 35.7% | 25.8% | 12.7% | 11.2% | 3.1% | 4.3% | $14,125 |
| Greene County | 66 | 44.8% | 25.5% | 13.8% | 11.2% | 7.1% | 8.3% | $17,080 |
| Bullock County | 67 | 37.6% | 18.5% | 10.6% | 7.5% | 7.4% | 7.9% | $11,806 |
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