The Annie E. Casey Foundation has published its 23rd annual Kids Count Data Book, and the news? Is mixed. From the report (which you can read here: KIDSCOUNT2012DataBookFullReport):
Unlike the domains of education and Health, where children are benefiting from long- term progress overall, the economic well-Being of children and families has plummeted because of the recession.
and
In 2000, the official child poverty rate, which is a conservative mea- sure of economic hardship, was 17 percent. From 2000 to 2010, the number of children living in poverty jumped from 12.2 million to 15.7 million, an increase of nearly 30 percent. The additional 3.5 million children living in poverty is nearly equivalent to the entire population of the city of Los Angeles.
And thanks, Leftover, for the links.
The intro to the report is a good read.
Quick links to summaries…
Databook Homepage with lots of interactive tools. See “Infographics.”
Summary Fact Sheet
Graphic/Categories and national Trends Summary
Twenty-two percent of our children live below the federal poverty line (FPL)…$22,113 per year for a family of four in 2010. The report states “families need an income of roughly twice the official poverty level to meet their basic needs, including housing, food, transportation, health care and child care.”
Forty-four percent of our children live in low income families earning less than twice the FPL.
Thanks for this, Leftover. The numbers are pretty stunning.
Shameful…in my opinion…
It illustrates how heartless and…well…evil we’ve become.