Wyoming Sees More Child Deaths
Posted by Childress on June 27, 2006
Officials in Wyoming are puzzled by a recent increase in deaths of children and teens, and at least one state official says the increase may be the result of meth use in the state. From AP:
A national report on child well-being showed a significant increase in the number of child deaths in Wyoming, placing the state next to last in that category.
Using data from 2003, the annual Kids Count report showed Wyoming with 37 deaths for every 100,000 children between the ages of 1 and 14, up from 27 deaths per 100,000 in 2000. Infant and teen deaths are counted separately. …
Marilyn Patton, administrator of protective services for the Wyoming Department of Family Services, said the state’s growing methamphetamine problem may also be contributing to the rise in child deaths.
“The abuse deaths in recent years, over 50 percent of them have been related to meth use by their parents,” Patton said.
Think about that for a moment. Over half the kids in Wyoming who are killed by abusive parents live in meth-using households. Add in what’s probably another high number — kids killed by alcohol-abusing parents — and you’re looking at some very troubling impacts of drugs on our society.
