Report: Well-Being of Alabama Children Still Lags Nationwide
Overall on children’s well-being, Alabama came in 44th nationwide, down from last year’s ranking of 42nd in the country. That’s according to the latest KIDS Count Data Book, released annually by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The report ranks the well-being of kids across the U.S. The publication includes indicators of health, education, economic well-being and family and community. This year’s report is based on data from 2017 from sources such as the Centers for Disease Control and the Department of Education.
Despite that decline in rank, the state progressed in several areas. For example, from 2010 to 2017, there was a big drop in the percentage of high schoolers not graduating on time.
The nonprofit VOICES for Alabama’s Children analyzed this year’s findings. “On the one hand, we’re excited to see improvements,” Rhonda Mann, deputy director of VOICES says. “But then when you look at how we compare to other states, and that’s the rankings, we struggle to keep up.”
The teen birth rate exemplifies this. In Alabama, there were 44 births for every 1,000 female teens in 2010. By 2017, that rate dropped to 27 births. Yet the state still ranks behind other states in this category. Nationwide, from 2010 to 2017, the teen birth rate declined from 34 to 19 births for every 1,000 female teens.
Source: Annie E. Casey Foundation
Nationwide, the teen birth rate has declined by 68% from 1990-2017.
In this year’s KIDS Count Data Book, which is the 30th edition, New Hampshire ranked first and New Mexico came in last. Alabama stood out nationally for its low percentage of children without health insurance. In 2017, 3% of the state’s children were without health insurance, compared to 5% nationwide. Overall, this indicator has improved since 2010, likely related to federal mandates under the Affordable Care Act.
Mann says for Alabama, the KIDS Count Data Book helps identify areas for improvement, including the need to increase funding for educational programs.
“Our mantra is what gets measured, gets changed,” Mann says.
Later this year, VOICES for Alabama’s Children will release the Alabama Count Data Book, which will feature county-level data.
Oil prices jump and stocks tumble following Israel’s attack on Iran
Israel's attack on Iran sparked the biggest jump in crude oil prices since Russia's invasion of Ukraine more than three years ago. Stocks fell sharply.
‘I just walked out’: The sole survivor of the Air India crash shares his story
Viswashkumar Ramesh was on his way home to London when tragedy struck. In hospital interviews, he explains how he made his way out of seat 11A — which isn't typically the safest part of the plane.
Sean Combs’ ex describes relationship marked by ‘manipulation’: ‘I couldn’t say no’
The woman who dated Combs until his arrest described the relationship in complex terms — traumatic but sometimes loving — and seemed to be working through her feelings about it on the witness stand.
A 2nd judge halts more of Trump’s voting executive order
More than a month after a federal judge halted a key portion of President Trump's executive order on voting, another judge has ruled that additional provisions of the order need to pause as well.
Trauma-informed nurses help sexual assault survivors. Most hospitals don’t have them.
Alabama has 44 certified SANEs for the entire state. Louisiana has 42. Mississippi only has 6 — for a population of almost three million.
The math in Celine Song’s ‘Materialists’ doesn’t add up
The characters in the romantic comedy Materialists, Celine Song's follow-up to Past Lives, see the dating pool in terms of the "market" – people are evaluated by how "competitive" they are and marriage is treated like an equation to be solved.
