WELFARE OF OREGON KIDS SLIPPING, STUDY SAYS

PORTLAND, Ore. - The well-being of Oregon children has slipped
over the last year according to a recent nationwide report on kids,
crime, poverty and health.

In a snapshot of all states published in the Annie E. Casey
Foundation's 1999 annual Kids Count Data Book, Oregon's ranking
dropped to 29th place from last year's spot of 23rd.

"We were never a shining star," said Gary Dombroff, director of
Children First for Oregon, a nonprofit advocacy group. "But this has
been a pernicious, precipitous drop."

The study, which gauges the quality of children's lives through trends
in crime, poverty, health and other factors, is considered one of the
most comprehensive measurements of child well-being in the nation.
Although many of the report's statistics date back to 1996, the effort
produces one of the only comparisons among states.

In this year's study, New Hampshire ranked the highest in child
well-being; the District of Columbia held the lowest spot.

In Oregon, the study bears the worst news for teen-agers: While the
national dropout rate dipped by 9 percent from 1985 to 1996, Oregon's
high school dropout rate has jumped by 33 percent. More than a quarter
of Oregon students quit school before they're scheduled to graduate.

Oregon's ranking is particularly alarming to children's advocates
because of the state's relatively healthy economy. In the early 1990s,
the state held a prouder 18th ranking.

The report cites several factors as having the most profound effect on
families -- poverty, unemployed parents, single parent households,
lack of health insurance, poor parental education and welfare dependence.

And those factors have not been combated with effective public
spending, said Bob Applegate, spokesman for Gov. John Kitzhaber.

"We've been scrimping on public programs that would help at-risk kids
for years," he said.

According to the study, Oregon children also face some grim death
statistics. Nationally, the death rate for children, ages 1-14,
dropped from 34 to 26 children per 100,000. But Oregon's rate has
remained at about 29 over the past decade.

Still, there is some good news regarding infant mortality, which
decreased by nearly half from about 10 deaths per 1,000 live births in
1985 to about 6 deaths in 1996.

Lisa Millet, manager for child fatality and injury prevention at the
Oregon Health Division, attributes the decrease to improved neonatal
programs around the state.

"There are kids who live now who never would have made it years ago,"
she said.

But children welfare advocates say the slip in the national ranking
signals that Oregon communities have given less support to children
over the past decade.

"What you're seeing is a steady decline in (support,)" Dombroff of
Children First said. "The main impact has been a shift of resources
away from children and families. It's benign neglect, but it's very
sad."