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KIDS COUNT

Maine slips in ranking for well-being of state's children

New Hampshire, Vermont doing better

PORTLAND (AP) -- While New Hampshire and Vermont ranked first and third for children's well-being in the Annie E. Casey Foundation's annual survey, Maine dropped two slots to 14th place with more children living in poverty and single-parent homes and more young people dropping out of high school.

Maine fared better than the national average in seven out of 10 indicators, including kids living in poverty and in single-parent homes, according to the report released Tuesday.

But poverty and single-parent homes remain a concern in Maine. Children living in a household defined as poor increased from 12 percent in 2000 to 16 percent in 2008. The number of children living in single-parent homes grew from 24 percent to 31 percent in the same period, according to the report.

Many indicators of children's well-being are tied to poverty, and Maine is the poorest state in New England, said Dean Crocker, president and CEO of Maine Children's Alliance.

"The bottom line is we have been trending down in terms of poverty," he said.

The report ranked the 50 states in 10 categories of children's health. It did not take into account the current economic downturn because it was based on data from 2000 to 2008.

Other areas trending upward in Maine include the high school dropout rate and teen birth rate, along with infant mortality and low-birthweight babies.

Maine wasn't alone in rising poverty rates. New Hampshire, which came out tops in the overall ranking, saw a 50 percent increase in percentage of children living in poverty.