The Annie E. Casey Foundation has released its 2025 edition of the KIDS COUNT Data Book, an annual resource that measures national and state data on economic well-being, education, health, and family and community factors.
As they sum up their latest findings: “This year’s trends paint a complex picture: steady progress in some areas, setbacks in others and persistent opportunities to do better for kids and their families. Since 2019, seven of the 16 key indicators have improved, six have worsened and three have not changed.”
Among the troubling results, “the number of teenagers disconnected from school or work has risen sharply, academic outcomes are still worse than before the COVID-19 pandemic, and, most concerning, more young people are dying.”
GOP members of the House and Senate slashed without discretion. Senators adopted cuts to critical health, nutrition, and financial stability programs.
The Casey Foundation report did not help Trump-dominated Republicans to determine the right thing to do for children, young people, and families in their respective states
Our nation should embrace every opportunity to lift up what is working and what remains necessary in order for children and families to thrive. It failed.
One of the report’s features is its breakdown of indicators by state, ultimately giving each state a ranking: “Where a child lives continues to matter deeply, with stark geographic disparities shaped by local and state policies, economic conditions, community investment and infrastructure.
This year’s Data Book highlights these patterns clearly: States facing the biggest challenges are largely in the South and Southwest — Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia.
In contrast, many Northeast and Midwest states rank near the top — Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Dakota and Vermont. Utah also stands out as a strong performer.
Where does your own state fall in studies like this, and where do your state’s elected officials stand right now on the budget choices that matter most to children and families in your community?
Strategic investments in basic needs programs like Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Child Tax Credit and the Social Services Block Grant have now been slashed by Congressional Republicans.
They are more than optional line items on a spreadsheet; they are essential, proven tools that help families stay afloat and help children and young people thrive as they grow into healthy, productive adults. Every state must face a dramatic defunding.
There are many ways to tally the facts on how much “kids count” in our nation. Choosing children over corporations should be a test too simple to flunk. Congress earned an “F.”
Marian Wright Edelman is founder and president emerita of the Children’s Defense Fund.