We never forget that behind every statistic is a living, breathing child. While we work each day to examine the causes of large-scale poverty issues in Arkansas, we are reminded that our work has real impact when we see positive changes for individual families. In 2011, we saw this in the drop in the number […]
The National Center for Youth Law and the National Council on Crime and Delinquency recently released Arkansas Youth Justice: The Architecture of Reform. The report details efforts to transform the juvenile justice system in Arkansas. The gist? Efforts by government officials, advocates, judges, service providers, youth, and their families have reduced the state’s reliance on secure confinement […]
It’s no surprise that recession has hurt Arkansas families, especially children. The state’s child poverty rate continues to increase and is now well over 27 percent. But new data on uninsured children provide some good news for Arkansas children and families—more Arkansas kids have health coverage than ever before thanks to ARKids First (Medicaid and […]
A new state program will help find more homes for foster children while maintaining important family connections by assisting relatives who are serving as foster parents, according to a new report from Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. The new subsidized guardianship program offered by the Arkansas Division of Children and Family Services allows family […]
Arkansas will lose an estimated $113 million in sales tax revenue this year on Internet purchases and lose more from untaxed catalog, phone and other “remote sales.” This lost revenue makes it harder for Arkansas to invest in public services that draw employers and build a strong economy.
So you want to do ARKids First Outreach? Here are some questions you might encounter along the way. Why do we need ARKids First? Health insurance impacts the economic stability of families as well as their health. ARKids First provides affordable and quality health care, especially important as more and more families face economic uncertainty […]
This issue brief is intended to be used as a supplement to the 2007 Kids Count Databook which is being released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. The databook, which is released annually, compares Arkansas to every other state on measures of child well-being. This year’s report ranks Arkansas 45th in the nation. This brief report examines several […]
A significant increase in the number of low-income children accessing dental services pushed Arkansas up the state rankings in a 50-state report card on children’s dental health released Tuesday. The Pew Children’s Dental Campaign gave Arkansas a “C” grade-up from “F” last year-for ensuring that more than half of the children in the state Medicaid […]
Just 38 percent of eligible Arkansas children are getting the regular, comprehensive doctor check-ups they need to stay healthy and avoid long-term problems, according to research by Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. The federal standard is 80 percent of children eligible for Medicaid. “Arkansas children are getting many more health services than in previous […]
The Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program is a federal Medicaid requirement that ensures low-income children receive comprehensive preventive care. It is designed to identify and treat physical or mental health problems that could interfere with child growth or development. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) set 80 percent as the […]