skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

MN Improves in Child Well-Being; Racial Gap Concerns Persist

play audio
Play

Wednesday, June 24, 2020   

ST. PAUL, Minn. -- Minnesota gets another high ranking in a national report that measures the well-being of children, although this year's data was compiled before the pandemic, and concerns remain about longstanding gaps affecting children of color.

The aecf.org.annual report from the Annie E Casey Foundation ranks Minnesota third among states for family economic stability, children's health and other factors. Last year, Minnesota ranked fourth.

Bharti Wahi, executive director of the Children's Defense Fund of Minnesota, said there are a variety of reasons the state has been able to serve most children well.

"I think the improvement in the overall ranking speaks to, certainly, the strength of the economy prior to COVID-19," she said. "I also think it speaks to a number of supports that we've put in place, particularly in the area of health care."

In 2018, the report said, only 3% of Minnesota children weren't covered by health insurance, below the national average. However, Wahi said it's reasonable to think that any positive trends will be reversed by the pandemic, especially for families of color deeply affected by the crisis. She said that coincides with historical racial gaps in Minnesota, in such areas as affordable housing and education.

Wahi said those racial gaps are receiving a lot more attention following the George Floyd protests. She said Minnesota needs to be bold in closing these gaps for children.

"There's a lot of gazing at the problem," she said, "but not a lot of, I think, sincere action and a willingness to try something different."

Minnesota lawmakers recently adjourned a special session without agreement on key issues, but Wahi said she thinks it will take more than state leaders to close these gaps. She said Minnesotans and other institutions need to do their parts.

Children's Defense Fund-Minnesota is coming out with a more localized well-being report this fall, and Wahi said she hopes it will include some data that reflect the current crisis.

The group was happy to see the Legislature recently approve a bill that increased reimbursement rates for child-care providers serving low-income families. The move only allows the use of money from Congress to help the state meet standards set by the federal government. But Wahi said they had been strongly advocating for that bill for several years, and that the small victory helps. That state program, known as CCAP, was questioned by Republican lawmakers over fraud concerns that were addressed by the Legislature last year.

The report is online at aecf.org.

Disclosure: Children's Defense Fund- Minnesota Chapter contributes to our fund for reporting on Budget Policy & Priorities and Children's Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
Iowa families can apply for up to $7,600 a year for private school costs. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

An ethics committee in the Republican-led Iowa House has dismissed a complaint filed by a group of community activists against a state lawmaker for hi…


play sound

Each spring, hundreds of thousands of California high school seniors have to figure out if they can afford to go to college in the fall - and two new …

Health and Wellness

play sound

A health care workforce shortage in New Hampshire is leaving Alzheimer's patients and their families with few options for treatment. Patients facing …


South Dakota ranks 49th in the country for its contribution to indigent legal defense costs, according to a 2023 report from the Indigent Legal Services Task Force. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

South Dakota is creating an Office of Indigent Legal Services after House Bill 1057 passed the Legislature with nearly unanimous support this month…

Environment

play sound

A Knoxville-based environmental group is voicing concerns over what it sees as an increasing financial strain imposed on taxpayers by nuclear weapons …

Environment

play sound

A bipartisan law set to take effect this summer prohibits foreign adversaries from buying Hoosier farmland. The signature of Gov. Eric Holcomb was …

Social Issues

play sound

Today, people across Arizona are voting in the Presidential Preference Election, a chance for registered Democrats and Republicans to choose their …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021