BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) - A new report says children in four Great Plains states are more likely to have parents with jobs and manageable living costs.
The Annie E. Casey Foundation publishes a national study called Kids Count that measures child well-being.
This year's study ranks North Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota in the top four when measuring the economic health of children. The study measures 16 different factors, including health and family circumstances.
Steve Cochrane is managing director of the national economic forecasting firm Moody's Analytics. He says the upper Midwest came through the national recession better than most states.
Cochrane says there wasn't a boom-and-bust problem in housing, and prices for farm commodities remained strong. The economies of all four states depend a great deal on agriculture.
