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The article reports that Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight & Hearing (NLFSH), a Seattle-based organization, has formed a nonprofit alliance for access to hearing care for low-income populations. The new AUDIENT hearing health care alliance will build collaborative efforts among hearing instrument and earmold manufacturers and licensed hearing health care providers. AUDIENT's mission, according to a NLFSH press release, is to meet the needs of licensed hearing health care providers who want to give access to high quality hearing health care to low-income patients around the United States who are income-qualified.

The article reports on cigarettes and taxation. There has been a 62 cent rise in the federal tax on cigarettes as of April 2009 which may lead to a reduction in the amount of people that smoke, or at least how much they smoke. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index shows that there is a correlation between the number of people who smoke and their annual household income, the lower it is the greater the percentage of smokers.

The article discusses the study published in June 2006 by the Brookings Institute, on the U.S. middle class. Brookings found fewer middle-income families in metropolitan areas today. Brookings noted that between 1970 and 2000, the number of middle class residents living in the 12 suburban communities they studied declined from 64 to 44 percent--only to be replaced by roughly equal numbers of high income and low income families.

Presents the report "Hard Times" commissioned by the Peak District Rural Deprivation Forum (PDRDF), which showed that Peak District hill farmers in England are among the most deprived in the country. Earnings of the farmers; Percentage of decline in farmers' income; Statement from PDRDF spokeswoman Carol Evans about the poor farmers.

Presents a list of rich and poor U.S. counties as of January 2004. New York County, New York State; Pitkin County, Colorado; Loving County, Texas; Loup County, Nebraska; Blaine County, Nebraska.