PHOENIX, Ariz. -- Un reporte reciente de UnidosUS y el Centro para Niños y Familias de la Universidad Georgetown, muestra que la cantidad de infantes latinos con seguro de salud en Arizona y otros estados, está cayendo.

El número de niñas y niños latinos con seguro de salud en Arizona y en muchos otros estados, lo que ha mejorado regularmente en las décadas pasadas, está cayendo.

Un reporte reciente de UnidosUS y el Centro para los Infantes y las Familias de la Universidad Georgetown, dice que Arizona tenía la quinta cifra más grande de niñas y niños latinos sin seguro en 2018.

Zaida Dedolph, directora de políticas de salud en Children's Action Alliance, dice que ls reducciones en la inscripción a Medicaid y al Programa de Seguridad de Salud de Niñas y Niños, son frustrantes.

"La mayoría, bastante más de la mitad de los niños asegurados, serían elegibles para CHIP o Medicaid, pero vemos mucho miedo o duda para usar esos programas."

Dedolph dice que la pandemia actual de coronavirus hace que todo sea aún más importante que los niños tengan cobertura de salud. Para información sobre el registro de niñas y niños elegibles, los padres de Arizona pueden llamar al 855-432-7587 o consultar en línea la página 'healthearizonaplus.gov'.

Kelly Whitener, profesora asociada en el Centro para Niños y Familias, de la Escuela de Políticas Públicas en la Universidad Georgetown, autora principal de este estudio, dice que los estados frecuentemente ponen obstáculos frente a las familias de ingresos moderados que buscan asegurar a sus hijos.

"Por ejemplo, algunos estados imponen 90 días de tiempo de espera, en el que la niña o el niño tienen que estar sin seguro durante 90 días antes de poder inscribirlo en CHIP. Los estados no tienen que tener esa política, así que terminar con algo como eso realmente ayudaría a los pequeños en ese rango de ingresos."

Y Dedolph cree que el dinero gastado en programas como Medicaid y CHIP es una inversión en el futuro del estado.

"Sabemos que los pequeños que tienen acceso a cobertura de salud pierden menos días de escuela. Tienen más posibilidades de graduarse de high school y de college. Y luego siguen como adultos para ganar más dinero y para pagar más de impuestos."

De acuerdo al reporte, Arizona estaba entre los cinco estados clave -incluyendo a California, Florida, Georgia y Texas- que sumaron dos tercios del total de infantes latinos no asegurados. Y de 2016 a 2018, la tasa de no asegurados para esos pequeños aumentó en todos los grupos de ingresos.

October is National Bullying Prevention Month and a recent study showed teens bullied in high school tend to become pessimistic about life prospects.

The study, published in the Journal of Research on Adolescence found students who experienced relational bullying were more likely to develop depressive symptoms and over time became more pessimistic about both academics and career prospects beyond high school. Relational bullying includes things like starting rumors, being deliberately ignored and exclusion from group activities.

Hannah L. Schacter, assistant professor of psychology at Wayne State University in Detroit, said a student's perception of social inadequacy can spread into other parts of life.

"You're receiving a message from your peers that you are someone who doesn't deserve positive treatment, and that may then generalize to these other life domains," Schacter explained. "Now you expect that you're not going to be able to do well academically, or perhaps you won't be able to achieve what you wanted in terms of your work or kind of life plans."

Maryland requires county boards of education to track and report on bullying. This year's report showed there were more than 7,800 incidences of bullying reported during the 2022-23 school year, an increase of 25% over the year prior.

Researchers found students who experienced overt victimization such as direct verbal or physical attacks did not report lower future expectations. Earlier research showed relational victimization had negative effects on elementary students' academic performance and standardized test scores over time. Schacter argued schools need to see the effects of bullying not just as a challenging social issue but also an educational priority.

"As there's been increased recognition of how it can negatively impact teens, more and more schools have, at the very least, adopted anti bullying policies," Schacter acknowledged. "Unfortunately, it's very time intensive, and can be quite costly to implement evidence based large scale school interventions for bullying."

Maryland's State Department of Education adopted a model policy to address bullying, harassment and intimidation in 2009 and has updated it in the years since. Last year the department began offering an online introduction to bullying prevention for educators.


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October is National Bullying Prevention Month and a new study showed teens bullied in high school tend to become pessimistic about their future.

Researchers found adolescents who experienced relational bullying were more likely to develop depressive symptoms and over time became more pessimistic about academics and career prospects beyond high school. Relational bullying includes things like starting rumors, being deliberately ignored and exclusion from group activities.

Hannah L. Schacter, assistant professor of psychology at Wayne State University in Detroit, said a student's perception of social inadequacy can spread into other parts of life.

"You're receiving a message from your peers that you are someone who doesn't deserve positive treatment, and that may then generalize to these other life domains," Schacter explained. "Now you expect that you're not going to be able to do well academically, or perhaps you won't be able to achieve what you wanted in terms of your work or kind of life plans."

The study began with more than 300 9th graders at 38 different high schools across Michigan. Students completed online surveys multiple times per year over three years.

Researchers found students who experienced overt victimization such as direct verbal or physical attacks did not report lower future expectations. Prior research established relational victimization affected elementary students' academic performance and standardized test scores over time. Schacter argued schools need to see the effects of bullying not just as a challenging social issue but also as an educational priority.

"As there's been increased recognition of how it can negatively impact teens, more and more schools have, at the very least, adopted anti-bullying policies," Schacter acknowledged. "Unfortunately, it's very time intensive, and can be quite costly to implement evidence-based large-scale school interventions for bullying."

She added it is important to have strong communication between researchers, policymakers and administrators to address bullying so it is not too burdensome for schools and is backed by what researchers have learned.

The biannual Pro-Kid Scorecard from the Children Now Action Fund was released today.

In it, 12 state Assembly members and seven state Senators earned a 100% rating.

Kelly Hardy, senior managing director of health and research at the nonprofit Children Now Action Fund, said the scoring reflects more than how lawmakers vote.

"They voted the right way on health and child welfare, child care, education," Hardy outlined. "They also supported kids in the budget, which is not always an easy thing to do when we've got budget deficits."

The lowest scores hovered around 48%, awarded to lawmakers who voted against certain bills but also voted for proposals like forced outing policies for LGBTQ+ students in schools.

Hardy noted the report is intended to inform voters as they head to the ballot box next month.

"Kids may not vote but we want to elect legislators who do their best to support kids," Hardy explained.

California ranks 35th in the nation for child well-being, according to the latest Annie E. Casey Foundation report and is just above the national average for per-pupil spending on K-12 education.