Kids Count Survey Finds Nationwide Improvement in Child Well-Being

Health indicators for children improved across the nation during the 1990s, according to the 2001 Kids Count report released May 22 by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. AP/USA Today reports that almost all states showed improvements in well-being indicators such as infant mortality, high school dropout rates and teen births. However, one indicator -- the rate of low birthweight babies -- showed a setback. The findings were based on government data, and include the following:

• Infant mortality declined nationwide by 22%, but the rate remains "much higher" in poor communities;
• Deaths of children ages 1 to 14 decreased by 23%, a trend attributed to "advances in medical care and a general decrease in deaths from car crashes";
• Teen deaths by accident, homicide or suicide declined by 24%;
• Teen births fell by 19%, and teen pregnancy also decreased;
• Child poverty remained constant from 1990 through 1997, but declined over the next two years and reached a 20-year low in 1999, when 16.9% of children lived in poverty;
• The rate of low-birthweight babies rose from 7% in 1990 to 7.6% in 1998. The rise may be "explained by an increase in fertility treatments that has led to more twins and triplets and to older women giving birth."

States Weigh In
Local newspapers assessed the situation in several states, including the following:

• Louisiana: Despite ranking second to last nationwide, Louisiana showed improvement in "most categories." Shannon Johnson, Kids Count coordinator for the New Orleans-based Agenda for Children, said several efforts have helped child well-being improve in the state, including the Louisiana Children's Health Insurance Program. Louisiana also showed a "surprising" drop in children living in poverty (Kern, Baton Rouge Advocate, 5/22).
• Maryland: Ranking 19th among states, Maryland improved in teenage deaths by accident, suicide or murder, but has had slower improvement in infant mortality rates compared to other states. This finding "stand[s] out in a state that has the highest median income among families with children" -- $63,400 per family in 1998, compared to $45,600 nationally (Lukens, Baltimore Sun, 5/22).
• Michigan: In response to the infant mortality rate, which has remained "virtually unchanged" since 1994 at 8.2 deaths per 1,000 individual live births, the state health department is sponsoring an infant morality conference this fall to start looking for solutions (Kids Count 2001 Data Book, 5/14). Black infant mortality rates have decreased in the Detroit area, but have increased elsewhere in the state. Overall, Michigan ranked 28th among states, up from 33rd in 1990 (Collins, Associated Press, 5/22).
• Tennessee: While Tennessee ranked among the bottom 10 in the nation, it moved up from 45th last year to 42nd this year. Pam Brown, the state's Kids Count director, attributed the improvement to "[s]olid public policy programs such as Welfare to Work and TennCare." However, Kris Frainie, director of Why kNOw, a not-for-profit group focusing on sexual abstinence education, added, "It's going to take generations to clean up a mess it took generations to make" in Tennessee (Park, Chattanooga Times & Free Press.