Bernanke says the economy needs growth of 2 percent to 2.5 percent just to create enough jobs to accommodate new people looking for work.
The Fed chairman is also signaling concern about the 6.2 million people unemployed for more than six months, who amount to 42 percent of all unemployed Americans.
Bernanke says that problem could contribute to an unusually high unemployment rate even as the economy returns to health.
Bernanke spoke at an Ohio State University business school forum on the economy that also featured Ford Motor Co. CEO Alan Mulally and IBM CEO Sam Palmisano.
