PORTLAND, Ore. – Oregon children are doing better by most measures, but the state appears to be slipping in the area of education, according to an annual report released today.

The 2018 KIDS COUNT Data Book from the Annie E. Casey Foundation assesses how kids are doing in the areas of health, education, economic well-being, and family and community.

Overall, the analysis ranks Oregon 30th in the nation.

While Tonia Hunt, executive director of Children First for Oregon, is proud of the gains the state has made - such as decreasing the child poverty rate - she noted education hangs like a cloud over the report.

"Overall, we're ranked 43rd for education of our children, which is deeply disturbing," Hunt lamented. "We know that's going to impact not only our kids' well-being but really, our entire state's economic well-being in the future."

The report found 25 percent of Oregon students aren't graduating from high school on time, compared with the national average of 16 percent. Hunt added the state has the sixth-largest class sizes in the nation, and believes the biggest issue is the chronic under-funding of schools.

The report also highlights the need to ensure the 2020 U.S. Census is accurate. Hunt said it will be critical in order to get the appropriate services and investments to the parts of Oregon that need them.

"If kids aren't counted, here in Oregon we could lose billions of dollars that support everything from school lunches to health care for kids, to the SNAP program, which is the food stamp program," she explained.

The census under-count of children age 5 and younger has gotten worse with every census since 1980; the count was 1 million short in 2010.

Laura Speer, associate director for policy reform and advocacy at the Casey Foundation, predicted it likely won't be better in 2020. She said census outreach efforts face daunting challenges, including a lack of leadership, the first-ever digital census survey, and the potential of suppressed participation due to a controversial citizenship question.

"There's still not a permanent director, and we know that's important," Speer said. "There's the need to fund state and local outreach for the census; and especially for the under-count of children, it's important to expand the pool of trusted messengers around the census."

The full report is online at aecf.org.




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Medi-Cal has dropped several hundred thousand low-income children from the health insurance rolls since April 2023, according to a new report from Georgetown University.

The data show a net drop in children's Medi-Cal enrollment of 200,000 kids between April and December of last year, as the state started redetermining participants' annual eligibility - which had been paused to ensure continuous coverage during the pandemic.

Mayra Alvarez, president of the Children's Partnership, said another 100,000 have been dropped this year.

"Some 80% of the people that lose coverage in California are losing it for procedural reasons," said Alvarez, "not because they're not eligible but because their paperwork didn't make it to the county, or they waited too long on the line and got frustrated and had to hang up, or they moved and the letter never even reached them."

The state of California has made a massive outreach effort to keep those who are eligible covered.

More than half a million children, half of California's kids, depend on Medi-Cal. And three quarters of them are children of color.

It is unclear how many kids who lost Medi-Cal were later enrolled in private coverage.

Joan Alker is a co-author of the report, and executive director of the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University. She said gaps in coverage can lead to long-term negative impacts.

"Kids are going to miss out on those well-child visits, they're going to miss out on getting the medications they need," said Alker, "be it an inhaler for their asthma or an ADHD medication. And that really sets them back, both in their health and their success in school."

A few years ago, California lawmakers passed a requirement for continuous coverage in Medi-Cal for children ages zero to five.

Alvarez said she is urging them to follow through and allocate $10 million in the next state budget to fulfill this mission.

After Texas, a new report shows Florida has seen the second-largest decline in the number of children enrolled in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program.

Of the 4.16 million fewer children enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP nationally, Florida accounts for nearly 600,000 enrollment declines - according to a report by Georgetown University's Center for Children and Families, tracking the Medicaid unwinding since COVID-related coverage protections were lifted.

Alison Yager, executive director with the Florida Health Justice Project, said it's more like a crisis has been unfolding in Florida - and they've long been sounding the alarm.

"This, at its most extreme, can be a question of life or death, really," said Yager, "and short of that, we're seeing far too many families having to now scramble to figure out what's going to change in their monthly budget so they can now pay for whatever medication their kids require."

Yager cautioned that even if families qualify for one of Florida's KidCare programs, there are gaps in coverage.

Going without insurance, even briefly, can cause people to delay seeking care and leave them financially vulnerable when they do.

In February, the state sued the Center for Medicaid Services to stop them from enforcing 12 month continuous eligibility in the state's CHIP program.

The report is based on administrative data from the states to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Joan Alker - executive director of the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown - said Texas, Florida, Georgia and California accounted for half of the total national decline in kids with health insurance.

"This is a real crisis in these states for families whose children rely on Medicaid, but also for the providers that serve them - pediatricians and clinics," said Alker. "The system is really getting shaken up."

An April survey by KFF reveals that almost one fourth of adults who were removed from Medicaid - the program for low-income individuals - after pandemic-related protections ended last spring, now report being uninsured.

The need for child care and early learning is critical, especially in rural Arkansas. One nonprofit is working to fill those gaps by giving providers a chance to get more education.

The Career Pathways Program with Save the Children partners with universities to grow the workforce of child care and preschool providers.

Joyce Taylor, Eastern Arkansas parent-family community engagement coordinator for Save the Children, had more than 20 years' experience with Head Start and said the program gave her the opportunity to pursue a bachelor's degree. It also provides her with resources she can use, in the classroom and with families.

"In particular, we have a family with a child that is autistic," Taylor noted. "Mom is working with the child at home. So I have things that I can share with that family, so she can continue to work with her child."

More than 153,000 openings for child care workers are projected over the next decade, largely driven by the need to replace those who have left the field or retired, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Taylor pointed out some children have challenging behaviors, and may have a lot of things going on at home. It is her job to help them thrive in preschool.

"Because we're the first start, when they come into Head Start, that's their first opportunity to be in a learning environment," Taylor explained. "It's up to us to do everything that we can do, to help make that first experience successful."

Karen Harrison, managing director of career in education workforce development for Save the Children, said rural areas have access to fewer resources compared to urban areas, so the program focuses on addressing the specific gaps in rural communities. She added the Pathways program aims to reduce barriers to obtaining a higher-ed credential or degree.

"All of our pathways come with incentives," Harrison emphasized. "We either pay all or partial of their tuition; we pay stipends, for books, supplies and materials. We also give 'barrier reduction' stipends. We know that child care for participants themselves can be an issue; transportation, technology needs."

Harrison added the pathway begins with a Child Development Associate credential, followed by an associate degree, and ultimately a bachelor's degree. In the process, they improve the career opportunities for workers, as well as the quality of early learning.