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Early Childhood Profile

 OverviewHealth and Nutrition

State policies that promote health, education, and strong families can help the early development and school readiness of America's youngest citizens. This profile highlights Virginia's policy choices alongside other contextual data related to the well-being of young children.

Trends1

Virginia has sustained access to health insurance for young families since 2001, covering children in families up to 200 percent of the federal poverty level. However, working parents only qualify for insurance if the family income is below 31 percent of the federal poverty level. Local jurisdictions set the income eligibility for child care subsidies, and range from 145 percent to 242 percent of the federal poverty level in 2006, but more than 9,000 eligible children are on a waiting list. This is almost double the amount of children waiting for subsidies in 2005. Funding for state prekindergarten increased from $18 to $38 million (nominal dollars), between 2002 and 2006.

Recent Developments1

Virginia’s 2007 and 2008 budgets include a $6.6 million increase for the Virginia Preschool Initiative for at-risk 4-year-olds, and $2.5 million to establish the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation. Foundation funds will be matched with local public and private resources with a goal of leveraging a dollar for each state dollar provided.

  • Young children (under age 6)2: 650,293
  • Infants and toddlers (under age 3)2: 315,847
Young children by income, 2006

Young children by income, 20062

Young children by race/ethnicity, 2006

Young children by race/ethnicity, 20062


Exposure to multiple risk factors* among young children, 2006

Exposure to multiple risk factors* among young children, 20063

Young children in single-parent families, 2006

Young children in single-parent families, 20062

Young children whose parents do not speak English well, 2006

Young children whose parents do not speak English well, 20063

 Health and Nutrition

Data Notes and Sources

Last Updated: March 31, 2008

  1. The following sources were consulted to write the state summary:
    Karen Schulman and Helen Blank, State Child Care Assistance Policies 2007: Some Steps Forward, More Progress Needed, National Women's Law Center, September 2007.

    Donna Cohen Ross, Aleya Horn, and Caryn Marks, Health Coverage for Children and Families in Medicaid and SCHIP: State Efforts Face New Hurdles: A 50-State Update on Eligibility Rules, Enrollment and Renewal Procedures, and Cost-Sharing Practices in Medicaid and SCHIP in 2008, Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, January 2008 http://www.kff.org (accessed April 11, 2008).
    National Center for Children in Poverty, Map and Track State Initiatives for Young Children and Families, 2000 Edition, 2000
    National Conference of State Legislatures, Child Care and Early Education Legislation Highlights 2005, June 2006
    National Conference of State Legislatures, Child Care and Early Education Legislation Highlights 2006, unpublished draft
    National Governors Association, Front and Center education articles, 2006, http://www.nga.org
    ZERO TO THREE, The Baby Monitor, 2006 Policy and Advocacy News Archive, http://www.zerotothree.org
  2. State data were calculated from the Annual Social and Economic Supplement (the March supplement) of the Current Population Survey from 2005, 2006, and 2007, representing information from calendar years 2004, 2005, and 2006. NCCP averaged three years of data because of small sample sizes in less populated states. The national data were calculated from the 2007 data, representing information from the previous calendar year.
  3. National and state data were calculated from the 2006 American Community Survey.