Key Messages/Talking Points

 

Main Message

We envision a country that ensures all families – particularly families of color and those living with low income – have what they need to create the conditions for their babies to thrive. This requires enactment of a comprehensive, family and equity centered policy agenda.  The State of Babies Yearbook: 2023 is a blueprint for enacting the bold policy solutions that babies and their families need to thrive. It identifies five imperative areas where urgent action is needed at the federal level: maternal health, infant and early childhood mental health (IECMH), child care, housing, and economic security.  


About State of Babies Yearbook: 2023

  • The State of Babies Yearbook, an initiative of  Think Babies™,  bridges the gap between science and policy with national and state-by-state data on the well-being of America’s babies. The 90 indicators included in the profiles and used for the state rankings are drawn from key national data sets (e.g., U.S. Census Bureau population statistics, the American Community Survey and the National Survey of Children’s Health), as well as the policies in place to promote their success.
  • Policymakers and advocates can use these data and the accompanying analysis to identify and advance policies that provide the near-term support and the long-term stability babies and families need to thrive.
  • The Yearbook focuses on five key priorities where urgent action is needed at the federal level. 
    • Maternal health. The Yearbook shows deep and growing disparities in maternal mortality and birth outcomes, particularly for Black women and birthing people and infants, creating inequities even before birth.  
    • Infant and early childhood mental health. The Yearbook, including data from the RAPID Survey, raises concerns about the key factors that shape babies’ early mental health: their parents’ emotional well-being and the level of adverse experiences they encounter, particularly for Black, Native American and Hispanic infants, toddlers, and babies in families with low income driven by material hardship.  
    • Child care. The Yearbook data show that child care remains a significant struggle for families—in areas related to cost, availability and quality—as well as for early childhood educators who are undercompensated and overstressed. This undermines the access of infants and toddlers to high-quality early education and care experiences and contributes to stress and economic insecurity for families, particularly families of color, those in rural communities and those with low-income. 
    • Housing. Yearbook findings on young children in crowded housing and other unsafe situations reveal the threat the nation’s housing crisis poses to early development, with alarming disparities for Asian, Native American, Black, and Hispanic infants and toddlers.  
    • Economic security. The Yearbook shows a large proportion of babies living with low income (particularly Black, Latine and Native American babies), and startling levels of babies in deep poverty, carrying significantly troubling implications for their development and long-term success in school and as adults.   
  • The Yearbook uses key indicators to rank states in four GROW tiers—Getting Started, Reaching Forward, Improving Outcomes and Working Effectively–based on how babies are faring and the presence of responsive policies. These rankings, together with the state profiles, help compare progress across states. The tiers from bottom to top are: Getting Started (G), Reaching Forward (GR), Improving Outcomes (GRO), and Working Efficiently (GROW). The top tier (GROW) is the top 25% of states while the bottom tier (G) is the lowest performing 25% of states.   
  • The tier where a state falls in the Yearbook allows for comparison across states, however, this ranking is less important than examining and taking action to address the disparities revealed by the data in individual states.

Key Takeaways

  • Diversity remains the hallmark of America’s babies, a source of strength and renewal. More than one-half, 52 percent, of infants and toddlers born today are of color which includes Hispanic (26.2 percent), Black (14 percent), Asian (5.5 percent), American Indian/Alaska Native (.8 percent), Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander (.2 percent) and Multiple Races (5.2 percent).  
  • A disproportionate percentage of families of color are living with low incomes as a result of past and present structural racism. Families of color are also more likely to experience barriers to accessing resources and supports that contribute to child and family wellbeing such as comprehensive prenatal care and quality early learning experiences. 
  • The number of infants and toddlers continues to decline. Today, there are about 11 million babies in our country, 900,000 fewer than five years ago. 
  • Poverty and disparities in access to resources along racial and ethnic lines continue to be defining features of a baby’s experience. Two million infants and toddlers in United States live in poverty. 
  • The state where babies are born and spend their first years is a significant indicator as to whether a child will have a strong start in life. 

Why This Matters

  • There are 11 million infants and toddlers in the United States, each of whom has unlimited potential. Our nation lacks key policies that would broadly support family well-being and ensure babies flourish, no matter where they live.    
  • The first three years of life shape every year that follows. Though every baby is born with unlimited potential, opportunities to grow and flourish are not shared equally, reflecting past and present systemic racism and barriers to critical resources. When babies consistently have what they need for positive cognitive, physical, and mental health – including safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments –it builds the foundation for the rest of their lives. But when babies consistently do not get what their growing brains need to thrive, they don’t develop as they should, leading to life-long developmental, educational, social, and physical challenges. 
  • Every parent wants to give their child a strong start in life, but the State of Babies Yearbook: 2023 data reveal families with young children have long lacked the supports that would help in times of crisis or calm. Public policies have been slow to catch up to the science of early development and do not address disparities created by systemic racism, economic inequality and geography. Policies do not reflect what we know families need to nurture their babies and help them reach their full potential.

What We Can Do

  • This nation cannot afford to continue failing its infants, toddlers, and families. As the State of Babies Yearbook: 2023 shows, our nation lacks key policies that would broadly support family well-being and ensure babies flourish, no matter where they live  
  • To do better for our babies and invest in our country’s future, we need Congress and state leaders to seize the opportunity to create the forward-looking, family-centered policies that our country has lacked. Policymakers need to make babies a priority through policies built on the science of brain development and budgets that put babies and families first. 
  • ZERO TO THREE created Think Babies to make the potential of every baby a national priority. When we Think Babies  and invest in infants, toddlers, and their families, we ensure a strong future for us all.  
  • Think Babies  is a call to action for federal and state policymakers to prioritize the needs of infants, toddlers, and their families. Specifically, we call on policymakers to support policies related to:  
    • Maternal Health   
    • Infant and early childhood mental health 
    • Child Care 
    • Housing 
    • Economic Security 
  • Join the movement to Think Babies  by signing up for our email list, visiting thinkbabies.org, and joining the conversation on social media at facebook.com and @zerotothree on X (formerly known as Twitter).    
  • Learn more about what you can do to be an advocate for babies in your state at  stateofbabies.org/take-action.   
Not Ranked
This indicator does not factor into the category's GROW ranking.