To improve access to prescribed foods through the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), state agencies have been offering online shopping options for enrolled families. This report from the USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) examines the availability of high-speed internet needed to access these options, distance to the nearest WIC-authorized dealer, and compares rural and urban areas.

The ERS also just released Food Banks in the United States: Systems, USDA Programs, and Participation.

Pennsylvania ranks 18th in child well-being in the 2026 KIDS COUNT® Data Book, a 50-state report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation that looks at how children are faring across the country.

The report shows Pennsylvania making slight progress or holding steady in several areas, but Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children is urging state and federal leaders to make sure that progress is not reversed.

For the first time, the Data Book includes a comprehensive score, from 0 to 1,000, in addition to state rankings. The score tracks 16 indicators across four domains: economic well-being, education, health, and family and community factors. Pennsylvania scored 626, above the national score of 547.

Pennsylvania improved among the indicators for economic well-being, health, and family and community, while its education ranking remained unchanged.

In health, Pennsylvania ranks 20th, up from 21st in 2023. The state also moved from 25th to 19th in the ranking for the percentage of children who are uninsured. However, that change reflects national trends in uninsured rates among children rather than a drop in the number of uninsured children in Pennsylvania. The state has 153,000 uninsured children, an increase from 2023.

That number is expected to continue to increase as changes to federal law are implemented, causing families to lose health insurance coverage.

Last year, Congress passed the largest cuts to Medicaid in the program’s history through H.R. 1, also known as the One Big, Beautiful Bill. The law is being implemented in stages, moving closer to major changes in a program that provides health insurance coverage for more than 1.2 million Pennsylvania children, or approximately 40% of the state’s child population.

Children who rely on Medicaid include those with special health care needs, children in the foster care system, children in rural areas, children from military families, and children in low-income working families.

Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children’s interactive map series, H.R. 1: Mapping the Cuts, shows how cuts to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) will affect health care access, food security, and economic well-being across the state.

The consequences of H.R. 1 will reach into nearly every corner of family life, making it harder for children to get care, harder for families to put food on the table, and harder for communities to support them. This is a serious and immediate threat to children and families across Pennsylvania.

The Data Book also shows Pennsylvania ranking 19th in economic well-being, up from 22nd in 2023. In the family and community domain, Pennsylvania scored 674, a 96-point improvement from 2019. In education, Pennsylvania ranked 10th among states, but its score was 491, down 145 points from 2019.

The KIDS COUNT® Data Book is now in its 37th year. The report provides statewide data to show where progress is being made, where more support is needed, and which strategies are making a difference.

PPC President and CEO Kari King was interviewed by Public News Service and Spotlight PA on the Data Book release.

The Appalachian Regional Commission’s (ARC) fiscal year 2027 economic status designations for Appalachia’s 423 counties are out now, with two improvements of note:

☝️ The number of counties at risk of being economically distressed dropped by five.

📈 The number of counties that are economically competitive with other non-Appalachian counties increased by four.

We use these designations to set grant match rates, monitor trends and direct investments to the region’s most distressed communities.

Work remains to ensure Appalachia’s economies can attain parity with others in the nation. Overall, 76 counties are designated as distressed, 85 as at-risk, 240 as transitional and 18 as competitive. Four counties have reached attainment.

View the FY 2027 map and data. 📍

A new report from Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families found that the national uninsured rate for children under age 6 rose to 5.3% in 2024, the highest level in nearly a decade.

The rising number of young children without health insurance is troubling, as children need frequent access to care in their early years. Coverage supports well-child visits, immunizations, developmental screenings, and timely treatment, all of which help children stay healthy and ready to learn.

The CCF report estimates that 48,000 young children in Pennsylvania lack health insurance — about 3,400 more than in 2022. Even though changes in Pennsylvania are not statistically significant, the data still raise serious concerns.

In Pennsylvania, children under age 6 are uninsured at a higher rate than school-age children — 6.0% compared with 5.2%. Higher uninsured rates are typically seen among school-age children, not younger children. Pennsylvania is one of only three states with this pattern. As we shared in our State of Children’s Health Insurance report last fall, more than half of Pennsylvania counties have higher uninsured rates for younger children than for older children.

Pennsylvania’s uninsured rate for young children is now the highest it has been in the past 15 years. To be clear, the CCF report focuses on 2024 data, which was collected well before the passage of H.R. 1 and its new federal program barriers and cuts, which haven’t yet gone into full effect. This should serve as a warning, since we expect more children (and many adults) to lose coverage when that happens starting in 2027. The risks are outlined in PPC’s H.R. 1 maps, which show how deeply communities could be affected.

If there is any bright spot, it’s that nearly all uninsured children in Pennsylvania are eligible for health insurance through Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Parents can enroll their children at any time throughout the year. However, work remains to address barriers to enrollment, such as confusing paperwork or fluctuations in household income that can affect eligibility and force families in and out of Medicaid plans. This is also why PPC has long supported the policy of continuous eligibility in Medicaid from birth to age 6 to keep kids connected to health insurance for longer periods.

We have a clear goal of making it easier for each eligible child to get and keep coverage, but there is a lot of work ahead to make that a reality.

A new report from ReadyNation shows the cost of gaps in Pennsylvania’s child care system has grown by almost $1 billion annually, costing the state’s economy well over $6 billion every year. The analysis finds that inadequate child care is driving major losses for working parents, employers, and taxpayers alike, underscoring how deeply child care challenges affect Pennsylvania’s workforce and economic strength.

At a time when employers need a reliable workforce and families need dependable care, this report makes clear that child care is not just a family issue, but an economic one. The findings highlight the urgent need for solutions to help parents find and afford child care so they can work, as well as for a stable, robust child care system that supports the economy and strengthens Pennsylvania’s long-term prosperity.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) plays a vital role in preparing students for today’s rapidly evolving workforce. By integrating rigorous academics with technical training and hands-on, real-world experience, CTE equips students with the skills and credentials needed to succeed, whether they choose to enter the workforce directly after high school or pursue postsecondary education along a defined career pathway. Student interest in CTE continues to grow; however, access to these programs has not kept pace with this rising demand.

Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children’s (PPC) newest CTE fact sheet, Career and Technical Education: Investing in Pennsylvania’s Future, outlines strategies to close the gap and ensure equitable access to high-quality CTE opportunities. Policymakers must prioritize sustained, increased investments in the state budget. A key step to attain this goal is to fully fund Governor Shapiro’s proposed $14.3 million increase to the Career and Technical Education Subsidy line in the 2026–27 budget. This investment would ease financial pressure on local school districts, enabling them to expand or develop programs in high-demand industry sectors. It would also address significant disparities in access across the state, ensuring that all students, regardless of location, can benefit from meaningful, career-connected learning opportunities.