About Alabama — Children’s Health Care

In the most recent assessment of state performance on children’s health issues, Alabama ranked 15th in the nation and first among all Sun Belt states. In three of the five categories measured, Alabama turned in a top 10 performance.

The rankings, published in May, were compiled for the Commonwealth Fund, one of America’s largest charitable foundations.

Alabama’s performance was termed a “surprise” by a Governing magazine reporter, but in recent years, a number of reports have shown Alabama emerging as a leader in children’s health care. Much of the credit goes to the Alabama Department of Public Health, which has led in creating access to health care for children; to the state’s medical providers, who stand out in the rankings for quality of care; and to medical insurers, who have kept the state’s costs low.

Alabama was the first state to have an approved, federally funded children’s health insurance program, and today only six states have lower percentages of uninsured children. Alabama’s 6 percent uninsured rate compares to a 9.1 percent median. This propelled our state to a top 10 ranking in the Commonwealth Fund’s “access to care” category.

Alabama also earned a place among the top 10 states in the “quality of care” category. High percentages of children who need specialty care receive it, and their doctors generally follow up afterward. Most young children receive the recommended doses of five key vaccines, and an above-average percentage of children needing mental health care are able to get it.

The third category in which Alabama received top 10 status was in the “cost” category. The state ranked fifth lowest in the average family health insurance premium and had below-average personal health care spending per capita.

In two other categories, Alabama ranked lower: 28th in equitable access to care due to a disparity for minorities and the uninsured and 48th in the “potential to lead healthy lives” category due to high rates of infant mortality and children at risk of developmental delay.

Alabama’s overall performance far exceeded that of Tennessee (ranked 26th), North Carolina (31st), Georgia (38th), Mississippi (49th) and Florida (50th).

EDITOR’S NOTE — Jim Williams is executive director for the nonprofit, nonpartisan Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama.