John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
John Lettieri, President and CEO of Economic Innovation Group | Official Website
These payments—which include Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and income maintenance—accounted for 22.4% of all personal income in the county, according to information from the Economic Innovation Group.
This marks a slight increase in the county’s reliance on government transfers compared to 2012, when such payments made up 19.5% of total income. Since then, the share has risen by 2.9%.
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).
In 2022, government transfers in Adams County primarily focused on older adults—such as Social Security transfers, which totaled $278.8 million (34.2% of all transfer income), and Medicare, which accounted for $221.7 million (27.2%)—played a significant role in the county's overall income.
On a per capita basis, Social Security payments rose from $3,652 in 2012 and $1,210 in 1970 to $4,308 in 2022, reflecting a 18% increase over the past decade and a 256% shift since 1970.
Similarly, Medicare transfers climbed from $2,495 in 2012 and $290 in 1970 to $3,425, marking 37.3% and 1,081% increases, respectively.
These increases in per capita payments align with shifts in the county’s age distribution. In 2022, residents aged 65 and older made up 20.8% of the total population, compared to 17.9% in 2012 and 14.3% in 1970. While the senior share of the population has increased, the rise in per capita Social Security and Medicare transfers suggests that these assistance programs for older adults now require a larger share of government funding—either due to growing needs, expanded eligibility, higher benefit levels, or increased enrollment.
According to the Economic Innovation Group, total income in Adams County excluding public assistance amounted to $43,614 per capita in 2022, compared to $56,218 when government transfers were included.
Breaking down the other contributions in the county, Medicaid transfers made up $127 million, a 15.6% share of total income, while income maintenance programs, including assistance such as SNAP or TANF, added another $105.5 million, or 12.9% of the total.
Compared to the previous year, Adams County's reliance on government transfers decreased by 3.4%.
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 $2,016 per capita in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars) in 1970 to 17.6% (or $11,529 per capita) in 2022 nationwide.
According to the Economic Innovation Group’s analysis, these trends are not merely short-term responses to economic pressures but rather reflect a profound, long-term transformation in how government support is integrated into American life. The study illustrates that structural shifts—from rising healthcare expenses and demographic changes to stagnant wages—have significantly increased dependency on government transfers.
| County | State Rank (Per Capita Transfers) | Dependency on Transfers (%) | % Population 65+ | Social Security Transfers (%) | Medicare Transfers (%) | Medicaid Transfers (%) | Income Maintenance Transfers (%) | Per Capita Transfers ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexander County | 1 | 50.45% | 24.97% | 20.8% | 15.6% | 31.6% | 25.2% | $24,592 |
| Pulaski County | 2 | 42.83% | 23.27% | 25.2% | 20.6% | 27.1% | 17.4% | $19,657 |
| Hardin County | 3 | 41.17% | 27.21% | 29.5% | 25.5% | 25.7% | 12.1% | $18,945 |
| Gallatin County | 4 | 31.87% | 25.54% | 30.9% | 26.4% | 21.1% | 12.6% | $17,397 |
| Marion County | 5 | 34.19% | 20% | 25.9% | 26.5% | 23.7% | 13.8% | $17,107 |
| Saline County | 6 | 36.55% | 21.48% | 27.9% | 21.9% | 26.8% | 14% | $17,090 |
| Union County | 7 | 33.89% | 22.49% | 27.8% | 20.5% | 30.6% | 13.3% | $16,320 |
| Massac County | 8 | 35.18% | 21.98% | 31.3% | 24% | 21.6% | 14.4% | $15,812 |
| White County | 9 | 27.45% | 23.15% | 32.2% | 26.1% | 20.5% | 12% | $15,608 |
| Clay County | 10 | 31.62% | 21.11% | 28.5% | 23.3% | 29.2% | 11.4% | $15,563 |
| Franklin County | 11 | 34% | 20.92% | 30.7% | 24.1% | 20% | 14.3% | $15,398 |
| Knox County | 12 | 31.76% | 22.54% | 29.7% | 21.2% | 25.3% | 11.8% | $14,923 |
| Mason County | 13 | 26.34% | 22.84% | 34.3% | 28.3% | 16.6% | 12.2% | $14,794 |
| Edgar County | 14 | 26.17% | 24.45% | 33% | 27.3% | 19.2% | 12.8% | $14,731 |
| Pike County | 15 | 26.23% | 21.9% | 30.7% | 28.3% | 20% | 12.2% | $14,458 |
| Pope County | 16 | 39.53% | 31.34% | 38.6% | 19.7% | 16.5% | 15.8% | $14,432 |
| Vermilion County | 17 | 29.16% | 20.39% | 30.9% | 24.1% | 16.9% | 18.9% | $14,318 |
| Hamilton County | 18 | 26.72% | 22.22% | 29.5% | 23.5% | 26.8% | 11.4% | $14,269 |
| Lawrence County | 19 | 36.1% | 18.82% | 28% | 23.2% | 29.6% | 11.4% | $14,211 |
| Greene County | 20 | 26.33% | 21% | 31.8% | 28.1% | 16.9% | 13.9% | $14,050 |
| Jefferson County | 21 | 29.54% | 20% | 30.9% | 24.2% | 19.2% | 15.3% | $13,930 |
| Iroquois County | 22 | 24% | 22.69% | 35.6% | 27% | 17.3% | 11.9% | $13,810 |
| Richland County | 23 | 26.37% | 21% | 31.4% | 24.8% | 19.3% | 13.5% | $13,718 |
| Macon County | 24 | 23.97% | 21.14% | 33.7% | 23.4% | 18.1% | 15.3% | $13,606 |
| Whiteside County | 25 | 25.96% | 22% | 36.3% | 24.7% | 19.6% | 10.8% | $13,588 |
| Fulton County | 26 | 28.27% | 21.37% | 35% | 23.5% | 21% | 12% | $13,558 |
| Stephenson County | 27 | 25.63% | 24.19% | 37.7% | 26.8% | 13.1% | 14% | $13,544 |
| Calhoun County | 28 | 24.35% | 25% | 40% | 27.2% | 14.8% | 9.7% | $13,500 |
| Wabash County | 29 | 25.82% | 22.64% | 35.7% | 26.8% | 16.8% | 11.6% | $13,470 |
| Hancock County | 30 | 23.95% | 24.46% | 38.2% | 26.6% | 13.9% | 10.9% | $13,443 |
| Morgan County | 31 | 26.82% | 21.18% | 34.4% | 24.9% | 19.8% | 12.4% | $13,419 |
| St. Clair County | 32 | 24.43% | 17.33% | 27.7% | 20.8% | 19.1% | 16.8% | $13,353 |
| Montgomery County | 33 | 30.69% | 21% | 34.2% | 25% | 20.5% | 11.5% | $13,336 |
| Macoupin County | 34 | 26% | 21.78% | 37.2% | 26.4% | 15.4% | 11.2% | $13,295 |
| Clark County | 35 | 26% | 20% | 34.7% | 28.5% | 16.4% | 11.4% | $13,295 |
| Marshall County | 36 | 23.3% | 24% | 40.5% | 24.9% | 15.8% | 10.5% | $13,256 |
| Stark County | 37 | 21.12% | 23% | 36.4% | 27.7% | 18.3% | 9.9% | $13,238 |
| Henderson County | 38 | 22.96% | 27.72% | 38.6% | 25.9% | 11.1% | 10.6% | $13,204 |
| Carroll County | 39 | 25.46% | 24.65% | 37% | 26.6% | 15.4% | 10.3% | $13,184 |
| Christian County | 40 | 26.73% | 20% | 34.8% | 25.7% | 19.3% | 11.5% | $13,111 |
| Jersey County | 41 | 24.91% | 20.69% | 37.8% | 29.6% | 15.4% | 9.4% | $13,060 |
| Wayne County | 42 | 26.39% | 22.3% | 33.2% | 24.8% | 21.5% | 12.2% | $12,992 |
| Jasper County | 43 | 22.98% | 21% | 35.5% | 29.8% | 14.5% | 10% | $12,986 |
| Randolph County | 44 | 27.96% | 20.97% | 34.8% | 27.2% | 17.1% | 11.7% | $12,984 |
| Kankakee County | 45 | 25% | 17.79% | 31.7% | 25.7% | 19.8% | 15.2% | $12,783 |
| Shelby County | 46 | 24% | 23.72% | 37.2% | 28.3% | 14% | 10.1% | $12,657 |
| Williamson County | 47 | 24.41% | 20.11% | 32.9% | 23.6% | 16.9% | 14.6% | $12,651 |
| Crawford County | 48 | 24.19% | 19.99% | 36.8% | 28% | 14.7% | 11.8% | $12,626 |
| Adams County | 49 | 22.42% | 20.77% | 34.2% | 27.2% | 15.6% | 12.9% | $12,604 |
| Perry County | 50 | 29.35% | 20.32% | 34.3% | 27.4% | 14.8% | 13.1% | $12,597 |
| Jo Daviess County | 51 | 21.65% | 30% | 46.8% | 29.1% | 6.3% | 8% | $12,579 |
| Mercer County | 52 | 21.25% | 21.81% | 40.2% | 28.8% | 11.8% | 8.9% | $12,576 |
| Coles County | 53 | 23.83% | 18.59% | 29.7% | 25.4% | 18.8% | 14.2% | $12,430 |
| Ford County | 54 | 19.28% | 19.49% | 34.5% | 27.5% | 18.4% | 10.9% | $12,408 |
| Bond County | 55 | 27.2% | 18.75% | 33.6% | 27.5% | 16.3% | 12.6% | $12,338 |
| De Witt County | 56 | 21.52% | 20.57% | 37.5% | 24.5% | 17.5% | 11.4% | $12,327 |
| Washington County | 57 | 20.21% | 21.69% | 37.8% | 28.6% | 14.8% | 8.2% | $12,246 |
| Fayette County | 58 | 27.44% | 18.93% | 31.8% | 24.5% | 21% | 14.1% | $12,226 |
| Lee County | 59 | 23.46% | 21.1% | 38% | 26.7% | 18.7% | 8.6% | $12,225 |
| Schuyler County | 60 | 22.87% | 23.69% | 34.9% | 29.7% | 11.7% | 11% | $12,216 |
| Jackson County | 61 | 26.14% | 16.75% | 26.4% | 23% | 18% | 19.8% | $12,095 |
| Madison County | 62 | 21.56% | 18.45% | 34.6% | 25.4% | 16.5% | 13.2% | $12,071 |
| Winnebago County | 63 | 24.12% | 18.57% | 35.1% | 22.8% | 16.6% | 17.9% | $12,038 |
| Logan County | 64 | 24.63% | 19.63% | 36.5% | 24.4% | 18.6% | 12.7% | $11,890 |
| Menard County | 65 | 20.67% | 20.63% | 38.9% | 28.5% | 13.3% | 9.4% | $11,855 |
| Cumberland County | 66 | 13% | 21.19% | 36.2% | 26.9% | 15.2% | 11.3% | $11,661 |
| Cass County | 67 | 23.3% | 18.25% | 31.4% | 24.1% | 19.9% | 13.4% | $11,658 |
| LaSalle County | 68 | 21.85% | 19.95% | 39.6% | 26% | 13.3% | 12.7% | $11,653 |
| Peoria County | 69 | 20.31% | 18.36% | 34.7% | 22.3% | 16.9% | 17.5% | $11,651 |
| Moultrie County | 70 | 15.47% | 19% | 35.9% | 26% | 18.9% | 10.1% | $11,637 |
| Scott County | 71 | 20.9% | 21.4% | 34.4% | 29% | 15.2% | 11.3% | $11,631 |
| Warren County | 72 | 20.98% | 20.31% | 33.6% | 25.2% | 16.4% | 14% | $11,619 |
| Bureau County | 73 | 22.51% | 23% | 41% | 24.7% | 13.7% | 11.7% | $11,610 |
| McDonough County | 74 | 24.12% | 19% | 30.4% | 26.6% | 15.7% | 14.4% | $11,598 |
| Sangamon County | 75 | 20.28% | 19.39% | 36.9% | 25.8% | 13.1% | 14.5% | $11,592 |
| Effingham County | 76 | 18.58% | 18.82% | 36.3% | 27.6% | 14.4% | 10.4% | $11,579 |
| Rock Island County | 77 | 23.66% | 20.48% | 36.6% | 24.4% | 15.1% | 14.7% | $11,541 |
| Putnam County | 78 | 17.22% | 24.85% | 46.7% | 27.4% | 7.6% | 8.8% | $11,530 |
| Edwards County | 79 | 23% | 22.66% | 40.7% | 26.8% | 11.3% | 11.3% | $11,482 |
| Cook County | 80 | 15.63% | 16% | 25.8% | 22.5% | 27.8% | 17.5% | $11,388 |
| Livingston County | 81 | 19.85% | 20% | 39.6% | 25% | 16.1% | 11.6% | $11,269 |
| Tazewell County | 82 | 19.93% | 19.87% | 41% | 24.9% | 14.4% | 10.7% | $11,262 |
| Johnson County | 83 | 28.55% | 19.74% | 36.1% | 27.5% | 13.7% | 11.6% | $11,238 |
| Clinton County | 84 | 19% | 18.61% | 35.5% | 24.4% | 18.8% | 8.7% | $11,193 |
| Piatt County | 85 | 16.37% | 21.22% | 38.9% | 33.2% | 11.5% | 7.5% | $10,973 |
| Henry County | 86 | 19.5% | 21.67% | 41.9% | 25.5% | 11.8% | 11.1% | $10,939 |
| Ogle County | 87 | 19.69% | 19.71% | 40.4% | 25.8% | 12.4% | 12.5% | $10,783 |
| Douglas County | 88 | 16.74% | 18.79% | 35.9% | 26.1% | 16.1% | 11.6% | $10,542 |
| Monroe County | 89 | 14.59% | 19.71% | 43.7% | 28.1% | 9.7% | 5.2% | $10,035 |
| Woodford County | 90 | 15.43% | 19.23% | 44.9% | 25.2% | 12.3% | 8.4% | $9,752 |
| Boone County | 91 | 17% | 16.96% | 41.8% | 25% | 10.7% | 13.1% | $9,468 |
| DeKalb County | 92 | 18.33% | 13.89% | 33.6% | 27% | 12% | 14.4% | $9,349 |
| McHenry County | 93 | 13.66% | 16.42% | 42.3% | 32.3% | 6.2% | 8.6% | $8,989 |
| DuPage County | 94 | 10% | 17.42% | 42% | 27.2% | 11.3% | 9.1% | $8,865 |
| Grundy County | 95 | 14.4% | 15.12% | 43.2% | 30.3% | 7.6% | 9.7% | $8,778 |
| Brown County | 96 | 18.71% | 14.93% | 35.3% | 25.1% | 20.7% | 10.6% | $8,751 |
| Lake County | 97 | 9.3% | 15.82% | 39.1% | 27.7% | 11.7% | 11.7% | $8,746 |
| Kane County | 98 | 13.37% | 15.56% | 38.9% | 25.7% | 11.9% | 14.9% | $8,539 |
| Will County | 99 | 12.96% | 14.54% | 39.3% | 28.1% | 9.6% | 12.5% | $8,251 |
| McLean County | 100 | 14.18% | 14.58% | 39.4% | 24.3% | 9.8% | 14.7% | $8,250 |
| Champaign County | 101 | 14.5% | 14% | 31% | 24.5% | 13.2% | 18.6% | $7,920 |
| Kendall County | 102 | 10.2% | 11.2% | 45% | 26.8% | 3.6% | 12.3% | $5,985 |
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