Child Poverty and Child Welfare in Nebraska

Children represent the fastest growing group of poor people in the United States today. An increase in the number of children living with one parent, an increase in unwed teenage pregnancy, a lack of child support, lower wages and benefits for women than for men, the cost of child care, and unemployment and underemployment in two-parent families contribute to child poverty. Policy options ranging from changing eligibility requirements for assistance programs to establishing state funded health insurance programs are presented. Methods of responding to abused and neglected children have changed dramatically. The effect of PI 96-272 on the child welfare system is analyzed, and the unique problems of Indian children are also discussed