WASHINGTON (AP) — The increasing number of Americans getting some kind of public assistance from the U.S. government may be slowing down, according to new numbers from the U.S. Census Bureau. Government officials say 52.2 million Americans — or 21.3 percent — participated in one or more of six poverty assistance programs on average each month in 2012. The programs tracked were Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Housing Assistance, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and General Assistance.