children
Low fertility rates, high housing prices mean fewer children in most states
Thirty-five states have fewer children than they did five years ago, a situation caused by declining birth rates nationwide, but also by young families migrating across state borders in search of cheaper housing. Even in the 15 states that gained children, all but North Dakota experienced greater growth in the adult population, meaning children now […]
‘An infusion of joy’: How a Flint pediatrician hopes to improve health and dismantle poverty
Updated, 10: 09 a.m., 4/30/23 Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha often wakes up not to the sound of an alarm clock these days, but from being too “giddy and excited” to sleep. “I literally can’t stop smiling,” Hanna-Attisha said. In Flint, where systemic racism and governmental failures left the Black-majority city to drink lead-contaminated water beginning in […]
‘The tentacles of the trauma and grief go everywhere’
Martha Omilian thinks of her life in two chapters: before Maggie died and after Maggie died. Before her daughter, Maggie Wardle, was murdered at the age of 19 by an ex-boyfriend with a hunting rifle, the former psychiatric nurse knew a life in which her daughter adored basketball and golf, was double-majoring in biology and […]
Infant formula crisis could recur, former FDA official tells Congress
WASHINGTON — U.S. lawmakers on Tuesday debated if enough has changed to prevent a repeat of the infant formula shortage, more than a year after a nationwide crisis began. The U.S. House Oversight and Accountability Committee’s Subcommittee on Health Care and Financial Services heard from two experts that while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration […]
Column: Expanding affordable housing access will improve health and education outcomes for kids
Our state has long failed children, particularly those from families with low incomes, when it comes to education. According to the Annie E. Casey Foundation’s Kids Count project, for the last two decades, Michigan has ranked near the bottom of the states in education, with the rate of fourth-graders not proficient in reading and eighth-graders […]
Susan J. Demas: As other states attack LGBTQ+ kids, Michigan emerges as a safe haven
After decades of fighting for basic rights and dignity, LGBTQ+ people last week finally became full and equal citizens in Michigan. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Thursday signed a landmark bill expanding the state’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) that bars discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation. The Lansing ceremony was marked by hugs […]
‘It’s a human rights abuse’: Dems reintroduce legislation to end child marriage in Michigan
Calling it an “archaic practice” and a “human rights abuse,” Democrats in Lansing this week reintroduced legislation to end child marriage in Michigan. State Sen. Sarah Anthony (D-Lansing) and Rep. Kara Hope (D-Holt) on Thursday held a press conference to announce a package of 10 bills that would prohibit any marriage involving a child younger […]
Food sanitation company fined $1.5 million for illegal child labor
A company responsible for cleaning meatpacking plants across the country has paid $1.5 million in civil penalties for making children as young as 13 work in dangerous conditions. The fine, announced Friday by the U.S. Department of Labor, followed an investigation by the agency into Packers Sanitation Services Inc., at 13 plants in eight states, […]
As RSV cases climb among kids, here’s what health experts say you should know
Amid a surge in visits to pediatric emergency rooms, doctors and public health officials are advising families to take preventative measures to stop the spread of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and other respiratory illnesses. Increases in RSV cases have been found in multiple regions of the U.S. including Michigan, according to the Centers for Disease […]
Study: Childhood hunger in Michigan has worsened since federal child tax credit ended
A Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) article in October confirmed previous research that food insecurity increased substantially after the expiration of federal monthly advanced child tax credits on Jan. 15. The study looked at the period between January and July of this year in a series of national surveys, and found a nearly […]
Susan J. Demas: Adults who choose to bully LGBTQ+ children are weird — and profoundly broken
Twelve years ago, the LGBTQ+ community started a powerful campaign to help young people with three simple words: “It gets better.” Growing up gay or trans is often devastatingly hard, from enduring slurs hurled by kids at school to having abusive parents who kick you out of the house just because of who you are […]
Dixon spreads misinformation about COVID-19 vaccine and schools
Following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendation Thursday to add the COVID-19 vaccine to childrens’ annual immunization schedule, GOP gubernatorial nominee Tudor Dixon echoed false right-wing claims that the government is now requiring the vaccine for school children. “A Dixon Administration would fight this government overreach and move to ban Michigan schools from […]