RALEIGH, N.C. -- The coronavirus has surpassed heart disease as the number-one killer of Americans, and a new report finds children are especially vulnerable to the personal and economic consequences of the pandemic.

Based on census household survey data taken this fall, the Annie E. Casey Foundation study found food insecurity, already a problem for more than 1 in 10 households nationwide before the onset of COVID, has spiked, particularly among Black, Brown and Indigenous families.

Vikki Crouse, policy analyst and Kids Count project director at NC Child, said North Carolina is facing its own crisis when it comes to child well-being.

"The data show that many children and families across the country have been left on their own without support for their basic needs during the crisis," Crouse said. "We see that 1 in 5 families in North Carolina report that they sometimes or often don't have enough to eat."

The data show 18% of North Carolina households with children said they had little or no confidence they'd be able to pay their rent or mortgage on time, while 21% of respondents said they felt down, hopeless or depressed. Sixteen percent of parents statewide lack health insurance coverage, and some have likely delayed getting medical care for themselves or their children.

Crouse said the $1.8 trillion in federal relief lawmakers passed earlier this year prevented more families from slipping into poverty and uncertainty.

"The CARES Act really demonstrated that our leaders can intervene to reach families and children that are struggling. We know that our country has the resources to do better by all kids and all families," she said. "Right now, we need immediate and decisive action to help families survive this catastrophe."

Meanwhile, COVID-19 cases across North Carolina are rising to alarming levels, with more than 6,000 new cases reported last week.

Leslie Boissiere, vice president of external affairs at the Annie E. Casey Foundation, said even with a promising vaccine on the horizon, North Carolinians could be facing health care, financial and mental-health challenges for years to come.

"We have to get back to the basics," Boissiere said. "We have to make sure that the poorest and most fragile families in our economy are taken care of and that we're funding those programs that can have an impact and make sure that everybody's basic needs are met in this country."

Boissiere pointed to the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which allows states to provide short-term cash assistance to low-income families with children, as a stopgap solution. According to the report, the program is long overdue for improvement.

In 2019, only 23% of families with kids in poverty received TANF assistance, down from nearly 70% at the program's inception in 1996.


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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.