skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

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

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Report: CA Children of Color Bear Brunt of Pandemic

play audio
Play

Tuesday, June 22, 2021   

LOS ANGELES -- Kids in California were among the hardest hit during the pandemic, according to the just-released 2021 Kids Count report.

Researchers from the Annie E. Casey Foundation crunched the numbers and found as of March, 14% of California households with kids struggled with hunger, which is tied for 6th worst in the country.

Kelly Hardy, senior managing director of health and research at Children Now, said the numbers are twice as high for Black households.

"Food insecurity was even more pronounced for Black and Latino families," Hardy reported. "Just the most basic needs of kids and families are not being met."

The report also showed even before the pandemic, California ranked 43rd for children's economic wellbeing, largely because of the high housing prices. And although we came in 36th for education, that could improve now that the Golden State has committed to funding transitional kindergarten for all four-year-olds.

The American Rescue Plan's Child Tax Credit will start paying out in July and expires in December.

Hardy called on Congress to extend it indefinitely.

"$300 a month for kids under 6, $250 a month for older children," Hardy outlined. "This support should be made permanent. It would be a game changer for millions of children and help lift kids and families out of poverty."

Nationwide, Census Bureau data showed things are starting to turn around.

Leslie Boissiere, vice president of external affairs for the Foundation, said for example 11% of households reported they didn't have health insurance in March, which is 2% better than last fall.

"So, starting to see a little bit of recovery, and we're hoping those trends continue," Boissiere observed. "But we do expect that on many wellbeing matters, we're going to see a decline if we look at 2020 compared to 2019."

As of 2019, California ranked 11th in the country for getting children insured, mainly the result of a decision to extend Medi-Cal to undocumented kids. But the number still rose from 2018 to 2019 by an extra 35,000 kids, something the authors theorize may be linked to the anti-immigrant policies of the Trump administration.

Disclosure: Annie E. Casey Foundation contributes to our fund for reporting on Children's Issues, Criminal Justice, Early Childhood Education, Education, Juvenile Justice, and Welfare Reform. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

More than six in 10 Americans favor keeping the abortion pill mifepristone available in the U.S. as a prescription drug, while over a third are opposed, according to a Gallup poll. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

New research shows more than six in 10 abortions in the U.S. last year were medically induced, and U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto - D-NV - is …

Social Issues

play sound

Colorado is working to boost the state's agricultural communities by getting more fresh, nutritious foods into school cafeterias - and a new online …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

 

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