Contact: Andrea Bennett 502-381-1176 abennett@kyyouth.org Jeffersontown, KY – An updated Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children issue brief Clearing the Air for All Kentucky Children was released today by Kentucky Youth Advocates. It affirms that children and babies across the Commonwealth are subject to immense dangers from secondhand smoke, particularly in communities without a strong smoke-free policy. Approximately 69 percent of Kentucky’s children live in a community that does not protect all children and pregnant women from [...]

Contact: Andrea Bennett 502-381-1176 abennett@kyyouth.org Jeffersontown, KY – Every child needs a family and a safe place to call home. A new issue brief released today by Kentucky Youth Advocates, Every Kentucky Kid Needs a Family, highlights the importance of keeping families together and placing children who cannot stay with their parents in family placements, such as kinship care and foster families. The number of Kentucky children in out-of-home care due to abuse or neglect [...]

Contact: Andrea Bennett 502-381-1176 abennett@kyyouth.org Jeffersontown, KY – How are children faring in your county? Where does your county rank on overall child well-being? What has happened in the last 25 years in Kentucky to help kids succeed? Answers to these questions can be found in the 2015 Kentucky KIDS COUNT County Data Book released today by Kentucky Youth Advocates. This is the 25th edition of the County Data Book. The 2015 County Data Book ranks [...]

The number of Kentucky children without health insurance fell by 27% over a one-year period. A new report by Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families and Kentucky Youth Advocates commends Kentucky for moving up from 28th to 15th place in state rankings on children’s health care coverage. Children in both urban and rural areas saw improvements in their uninsured rates. “Kentuckians should be proud of this achievement for Kentucky’s children,” said Joan Alker, director [...]

New data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that more than one in every four Kentucky children live in poverty. The American Community Survey 1-year 2014 estimate showed 26.2 percent of Kentucky children lived in poverty, which was not a significant change from the 2013 estimate. However, the percent of Kentucky children living in poverty remains higher than when the recession began in 2008 (23.5 percent). "According to Dr. Terry Brooks, executive director [...]

New health insurance data released today by the U.S. Census Bureau revealed that health insurance coverage rates for both children and adults increased in Kentucky from 2013 to 2014. The one-year estimates from the American Community Survey revealed that 95.7 percent of Kentucky children under 18 had health insurance in 2014, compared with 94.1 percent in 2013. This is an estimated increase of 16,000 children. In addition, coverage for those under age 65, which includes [...]

Contact: Andrea Bennett 502-381-1176 abennett@kyyouth.org Jeffersontown, KY – Kentucky ranks 34th in the nation in overall child well-being, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s 2015 KIDS COUNT® Data Book co-released today by Kentucky Youth Advocates. The national KIDS COUNT Data Book provides state-level data and rankings. The 2015 Kentucky KIDS COUNT County Data Book, which includes county level data and rankings, will be released in November. In addition to ranking 34th in overall child [...]

Contact: Andrea Bennett abennett@kyyouth.org 502-381-1176 Jeffersontown, KY - Every child needs a family and a safe place to call home. On any given night, nearly 1,300 out of the 7,211 Kentucky children and youth in foster care are going to bed without the care and comfort of a family. The latest KIDS COUNT® policy report, Every Kid Needs a Family: Giving Children in the Child Welfare System the Best Chance for Success, co-released by the Annie [...]

The last day of the 2015 Kentucky General Assembly represented an historic moment in the effort to protect victims of dating violence. HB 8, which will extend protective orders to people in dating relationships, passed the Kentucky Senate. Then, the House concurred with Senate changes, and the bill now heads to the Governor for his signature to become law. This legislation represents a priority on the Blueprint for Kentucky's Children because it will help protect victims [...]