A new study released today by the U.S Census Bureau confirms what many already thought; the recession hit poor and middle class families the most.

According to an article about the story published by the Associated Press and picked up by other news outlets, “the wealthiest 10 percent of Americans — those making more than $138,000 each year — earned 11.4 times the roughly $12,000 made by those living near or below the poverty line in 2008, according to newly released census figures. That ratio was an increase from 11.2 in 2007 and the previous high of 11.22 in 2003.”

The report also indicates the national median income has decreased around $2,000 for every family in the poor/middle class demographic, while “income at the top 5 percent of households — those making $180,000 or more — was 3.58 times the median income, the highest since 2006.”

Obama has a plan to help the middle class. President-elect Barack Obama wants his No. 2 to head up a special task force designed to find ways to hike the standard of living for middle-class and working families in America. “Our charge is to look at existing and future policies across the board and use a yardstick to measure how they are impacting the working- and middle-class families,” Biden said in a statement. “Is the number of these families growing? Are they prospering?” The White House Task Force on Working Families will concentrate on improving education and training for working Americans as well as protecting incomes and retirement security of the middle class, The Washington Post reports. The task force will join forces with labor and business leaders. “My administration will be absolutely committed to the future of America’s middle-class and working families,” Obama said in a statement. “They will be front and center every day in our work in the White House, and this task force will be one vehicle we will use to ensure that we never forget that commitment.”