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State Health Compare

Percent of children considered to be poor (<100% FPG)

Measure Overview

Children who grow up in poverty often the lack the nutrition, shelter, sanitation, health care, and education they need to thrive and become healthy adults. The short-term effects of childhood poverty—including difficulties like hunger, housing instability, and low academic achievement—can lead to long-term health consequences, such as increased risk of heart disease, obesity, asthma, and mental illness. Given the significant impact of childhood poverty on an individual’s the life course, it is important to track the number of children considered to be poor to identify and target populations at higher risk of poverty-related adverse health outcomes.

State Health Compare provides annual, state-level rates of children considered to be poor based on data from the American Community Survey (ACS) Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) files. Estimates can be broken down by race/ethnicity group (African American/Black, Hispanic/Latino, Other/Multiple Races, and White).

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