In 1963 economist Mollie Orshansky created this "line" by multiplying the cost of an adequate diet by 3
... Today: poor families are those with less than the cost of an 
adequate diet x3 ... poverty line as three times the cost of a nutritionally adequate 
diet - President... [DOC] [TLE] How the Poverty Level is Calculated | Mothertalkers [PAR] Sep 30, 2007 ... Mollie Orshansky had no intent for her calculations to be used in this ...