WalletHub study: 2022’s states with the most underprivileged children

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With August being Child Support Awareness Month and nearly 1 in 7 children in the U.S. living in poverty, the personal-finance website WalletHub released its report on 2022’s States with the Most Underprivileged Children, as well as accompanying videos and expert commentary.

In order to bring awareness to the condition of underprivileged children throughout the U.S., WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 27 key measures of neediness. The data set ranges from share of children in households with below-poverty income to child food-insecurity rate to share of maltreated children.

States with the Most Underprivileged Kids
1. Mississippi 11. Arkansas
2. West Virginia 12. Nevada
3. Alaska 13. Indiana
4. New Mexico 14. Alabama
5. Louisiana 15. South Carolina
6. Oklahoma 16. Ohio
7. Montana 17. Wyoming
8. District of Columbia 18. Missouri
9. Arizona 19. Tennessee
10. Kentucky 20. Oregon

Key Stats

  • Louisiana has the highest child food-insecurity rate, 24.60 percent, which is 2.6 times higher than in North Dakota, the state with the lowest at 9.60 percent.
  • Mississippi has the most infant deaths (per 1,000 live births), eight, which is two times more than in Vermont, the state with the fewest at four.
  • West Virginia has the highest share of children in foster care, 2.01 percent, which is 10.6 times higher than in New Jersey, the state with the lowest at 0.19 percent.
  • Texas has the highest share of uninsured children aged 0 to 18, 11.20 percent, which is 7.5 times higher than in Massachusetts, the state with the lowest at 1.50 percent.
  • Maine has the highest share of maltreated children, 1.88 percent, which is 11.1 times higher than in Pennsylvania, the state with the lowest at 0.17 percent.

To view the full report and your state or the District’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/best-worst-states-underprivileged-children/5403