The kids are all right.

A recent Kids Count study, released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, determined that Pennsylvania ranks 14th out of 50 states in terms of children's overall well-being.Children's health and education are provided for; but several years of economic turmoil have undermined the family and community health of Pennsylvania's children: About one-fifth of the children in the Commonwealth lived in poverty in 2010, and the numbers of children living in households that were "food insecure" at some point during the year grew by 12.8 percent between 2005 and 2009. The numbers of children in families in which neither parent has full-time, year round employment increased by 13.5 percent between 2008-2010.On the plus side, the numbers of teenagers who have abused drugs and alcohol has dipped from 7 percent to 6 percent. Math and reading scores are upKids Count studyThe study looked at 16 indicators within four domains: Education, health, economic well-being, and family and community. Each state was ranked on how well its children fared in each of the domains. The District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands were not included because they are not states and therefore comparisons on many indicators of child well being are not meaningful, the study authors say.The education domain ranks preschool opportunities, reading and math proficiency, and whether high school students graduate on time. The health domain considers the percentage of children who lack health insurance, child and teen death rates, low-birth weight babies, and alcohol or drug abuse among teens. Economic well-being looks at data related to child poverty, family employment, housing costs, and whether older teens not in school are working. The family and community domains look at percentage of children living in high-poverty areas, single-parent households, and education levels among heads of households, as well as teen birth rates.How did we do?Pennsylvania scored eighth in the education and health domains; but 17th in economic well-being and 23rd in family and community, according to the study.Still, that's not too bad, says Joan Benso, president and CEO of Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children. The nonprofit organization aims to better the lives of children in the commonwealth.Benso, who has been keeping an eye on how well children fare in Pennsylvania for 20 years, weighed in on the study results."The latest Kids Count data clearly show the lingering effects the recession is having on Pennsylvania's kids and families. A third of Pennsylvania's children are in households in which parents are unemployed or underemployed, and one out of five of our children lives in poverty," she said."On a more positive note, Pennsylvania holds relatively strong national rankings in education and children's health. Kids Count data has us eighth in each of these two categories, reflecting the fact those areas have been priorities for state leaders over the years. The challenge now is not to backslide on that progress," Benso said.Tim Eiler, press secretary for the state Department of Education, was pleased with the study results on education."The department is pleased to be recognized for the work the state is doing to ensure that students have access to quality educational programs," he said. "Gov. (Tom) Corbett is committed to ensuring that quality early education opportunities are provided to families; these include, Pre-K Counts, the Keystone Starts Program and Head Start Supplemental Assistance."But the state must keep the momentum rolling, Benso said."Improving the lives and well-being of children has to be a multifaceted approach. You have to address multiple aspects and not become focused only on one. This means we need a strategy that addresses the quality of and access to early childhood education, health care, child care for working parents, and other supports that keep kids healthy, safe and nurtured. But the most important thing is to make sure we keep moving forward on the road map and not slipping backward," she said."In a tough economy, it might be tempting to save money by cutting funding to programs that help kids, but that sets us back and ultimately costs more money down the road. As stated above, the challenge is to not backslide by cutting programs that help kids stay healthy and learn. We need to build on what works, not retreat from it," Benso said.How Carbon Countychildren are faringWhile the Kids Count study ranks states, it also provides data on a county level. According to the study, which uses the most recent information available, the numbers of children from birth to age 5 who are receiving early intervention services grew from 239 to 344, or 43.9 percent, between 2005 and 2010. Meanwhile, the number of Head Start slots available grew from 175 to 247.On another positive note, the numbers of substantiated abuse and neglect fell slightly, from 24 cases in 2006 to 21 in 2010, and the numbers of children in the juvenile court system also dropped, from 225 to 118 during the same period.But still too many children start out at a disadvantage. The number of babies born to married couples in Carbon County dropped about 4 percent, from 9,378 in 2000 to 8,993 by 2010. Those born into "traditional" two-parent families in which only the father is employed, dropped 14.9 percent, from 2,316 to 1,970, during the same time period.At the same time, babies born to single mothers rose in number, from 2,090 to 2,958, or 41.5 percent.According to the 2000-2010 data, the annual income for married couples rose from $49,895 to $72,339. For single mothers, income rose from $18,051 to $22,336 during the same period.The recent economic recession has hit Carbon County hard. Unemployment rates spiraled from 5.9 percent in 2006 to 10.9 percent by 2010. As a ripple effect, the numbers of children receiving food stamps ballooned by 64.3 percent, from 2,099 to 3,449, between 2007 and 2011.The numbers of children who do not have health insurance soared, increasing from 0.8 percent in 2004 to 3.5 percent in 2008. The numbers of children enrolled in the state's Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) rose 30.9 percent, from 961 to 1,258 between 2007 and 2011. During that time period, the numbers of Carbon County children enrolled in government medical assistance also grew 21.5 percent, from 3,886 to 4,725."A priority issue for the state this fall should be the creation of a state-run health insurance exchange essentially an online marketplace where families can easily shop for affordable health insurance for their children," Benso said. "Such an exchange would help us reach the more than 153,000 Pennsylvania children who still lack health insurance, and it would help Pennsylvania move up in the Kids Count rankings for health."She said that "Under the federal health care reform law that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court, health insurance exchanges must be established in each state, and if the state does not do it, the federal government will step in and do it for us. It would be better for Pennsylvania to establish its own exchange, but that will require legislation to be approved by the General Assembly and signed into law by the governor this fall. This legislation should be the highest priority in the weeks ahead."Invest in the future by investing in childrenBenso urges leaders to invest in the future by investing in our children."Our children are the commonwealth's most valuable resource. They are an investment in the economic strength of our state, the future workforce that will help the state grow and prosper," she said. "We have to look at investments in our children as just that investments that will reap benefits for all of us. Well-educated, healthy children are more likely to become employed, prosperous adults. Especially in difficult economic times, when money is tight, we have to make wise decisions about how to invest scarce taxpayers dollars. Investing in kids is one of the smartest things we can do to help the state's long-term prosperity."