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ECONOMIC REPORT OF THE PRESIDENT

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Figure 4-13<br />

Low Birth Weight by Maternal Socioeconomic Status, 1989—2011<br />

Percent<br />

20<br />

15<br />

Low Socioeconomic Status<br />

2011<br />

10<br />

5<br />

Policy Interventions in Early Health<br />

High Socioeconomic Status<br />

0<br />

1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015<br />

Note: Low socioeconomic status (SES) is defined as African-American, less than a high school<br />

degree, and unmarried. High SES is defined as White, college-educated, and married.<br />

Source: Aizer and Currie (2014).<br />

Home Visitation<br />

Several types of public investments target child development from<br />

before children are born and throughout early childhood. Home visitation<br />

programs, including those that are Federally funded by the Maternal, Infant,<br />

and Early Childhood Home Visiting program, rely on trained professionals,<br />

including nurses, teachers, or social workers, to visit families during<br />

pregnancy and shortly after a baby is born to provide a range of health,<br />

development, and parenting information. Depending on the model, this<br />

may include parental observations and instruction, nutrition and wellness<br />

education, and psychological consultations. The goal of home visitation<br />

programs is to ensure a healthy, safe, and supportive environment in the<br />

first years of a child’s life. The programs tend to be targeted toward children<br />

who are most at risk of receiving insufficient prenatal and antenatal health<br />

care, including children of first-time, low-income, less-educated and/or<br />

unemployed mothers.<br />

These programs—which were expanded through new grants to States<br />

under the Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA)—have shown promise in<br />

reducing mortality among infants between 4 weeks and 1 year of age born to<br />

mothers of low socioeconomic status. Poverty has been a major contributor<br />

Inequality in Early Childhood and Effective Public Policy Interventions | 177

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