Pandemic has worsened child well being in state

by Susan Dunlap, NM Political Report
Sept. 2, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic is threatening the progress the state started to make towards ending its long-time position as 50^th in the nation for child well being, according to child advocacy organization New Mexico Voices for Children.

Emily Wildau, research and policy analyst for New Mexico Voices for Children’s annual Kids Count data book, said the U.S. census polled Americans using both text and computers from the end of April to the end of July to generate early data on how the nation was faring under the pandemic. Some of that data was available at the state level, she said.

New Mexico ranked as the lowest in the nation for child well-being in 2020, according to the Kids Count data book, and has done so for years. Recent policy changes and the increased revenue from the oil boom in the Permian Basin last year brought hope for many child advocates of an improved future, especially for children of color and low-income children in New Mexico.

Read more at the NM Political Report