There are 1,378,232 children under 18 in Missouri. Many face strong challenges every day.

State Statistics

• Children Living in Poverty (2006) - 259,551
• Children Not Covered by Health Insurance at Any Time in 2006 - 127,000
• Children’s Health Care Covered by Government Assistance (2006) - 428,000
• Children Reported Abused (2005) - 55,217
• 2 Year Olds Not Immunized (2006) - 13,234 (17.1%)
• Child Abuse Deaths (2000-2005) - 269
• 3-4 Year Olds Not Enrolled in a nursery school, pre-school, or pre-kindergarten education program (2006) - 93,879 (57.7%)
• % of 4th Graders Scoring below Basic Reading Levels (2007) - 33