Education

Health of U.S. Children Is Ranked Low in World

By Ellen Flax — March 28, 1990 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

The health and economic status of children in the United States frequently is lower than that of children in other industrialized countries, a new report asserts.

The study, which was prepared by the U.S. Bureau of the Census for the House Select Committee on Children, Youth, and Families, found that children in this country are more likely to live in poverty, live with one parent, or be killed than are children in other industrialized nations.

The report compared U.S. children with children in Australia, Canada, France, West Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Norway, Sweden, the Soviet Union, and the United Kingdom. It offered no explanations for the differences among nations.

For some statistical measures, children from the developed countries were compared with children in four developing nations: China, India, Israel, and Mexico.

Among the report’s major findings are:

Among six industrialized countries studied, the United States and Australia had the highest percentage of children living in poverty: 17 percent. In other developed countries, at least 99 percent of poor families with children receive government assistance; in the United States, only 73 percent receive aid.

Children in this country experience divorce at much higher rates than do children in other developed countries. U.S. children experience divorce at a rate of 19 per 1,000 children under age 18. Japan had the lowest rate, 5 per 1,000 children under age 18.

Only the Soviet Union, which4has 25 deaths per 1,000 live births, has an infant-mortality rate that exceeds the U.S. rate of 10 deaths per 1,000 live births.

Young males in the United States are five times more likely to be murdered than are those in other developed countries. In Mexico, however, young males are killed at nearly double the U.S. rate.

One in 10 U.S. teenagers between the ages of 15 and 19 becomes pregnant, the highest teenage-pregnancy rate recorded in the study.

Republican committee members questioned the study’s major findings. In an appendix to the report, they disputed the statistical validity of comparing children in the United States with children in more ethnically homogeneous countries.

The report’s release last week coincided with an American Academy of Pediatrics’ international conference here on how other developed countries provide health care for children and pregnant women.

C. Arden Miller, a professor of child and maternal health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who attended the conference, said there was consensus among participants that the federal government must play a larger role in providing health services for young children.

He said participants also agreed that there should be a universal health-insurance system for pregnant women and children.

Dr. Miller said most participants at the conference believed there should be comprehensive, community-based services for hard-to-reach populations, and that the government must make a greater effort toward lowering the poverty rate among children.

A version of this article appeared in the March 28, 1990 edition of Education Week as Health of U.S. Children Is Ranked Low in World

Events

Jobs Virtual Career Fair for Teachers and K-12 Staff
Find teaching jobs and other jobs in K-12 education at the EdWeek Top School Jobs virtual career fair.
Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: March 13, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 7, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 31, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read