Let’s make no bones about it: most of us here are figuratively beaten-down-by-life adults but, for the most part, can take the suffering and drudgery that Oklahoma continues to heavily bear down on us in good—even great—spirits. But, according to a couple of just-released “scientific” findings, that same strife ain’t so hot for your brood.
According to a recent study by that great clickbait think-tank known as WalletHub (and posted on KFOR.com), in their 2018 list of the Best and Worst Places to Have a Baby, Oklahoma ranked as the fifth worst place to spawn and respawn. Look out though…we’re coming for you, Louisiana!
A new study has ranked Oklahoma as the 5th worst state to have a baby.
Earlier this week, WalletHub released its ‘2018’s Best & Worst States to Have a Baby.’
WalletHub says they compared the 50 states, and the District of Columbia, across 26 key measures of cost, health care accessibility and baby-friendliness. The data set ranges from hospital conventional-delivery charges to annual average infant-care costs to pediatricians per capita.
The other states in the list include the aforementioned Louisiana, South Carolina, Alabama and Mississippi, clearly to no one’s surprise I’m sure.
Being a Gold Star member of the health-care community, I can say, for the most part, my adult services was typically exceptional. But, then again, I wasn’t having a baby; an ex-girlfriend of mine worked in a local baby ward and she didn’t seem to like it, or the babies, that much. So I guess they’re right.
In addition to that dizzying low of a number, we apparently also rank 51st—dead last, if you will—in both midwives and OBGYNs per capita AND pediatricians and family doctors per capita. That means you’re probably better off having your baby in your living room, using YouTube how-to clips to “get ‘er done.”
And after that baby is out and ready to be raised, one place you might want to avoid is Lawton, which was named as the fourth worst place to raise a child in America by the brainiacs over at 24/7 Wall Street and propagated by kswo.com, serving the western Texoma area.
“The report cites a low high school graduation rate, low pre-school enrollment rate and lack of places to exercise as contributing factors to the city's high ranking.”
The report also mentions Lawton's violent crime rate, which is over 600 cases per every 100-thousand people, which, when you do the math, isn’t all that bad I guess. (I’m bad at math, by the way.) Other cities even more worse to raise a child in include Medford, Oregon, Battle Creek, Michegan and, once again, to no one’s surprise, Farmington, New Mexico.
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Follow Louis on Twitter at @LouisFowler and Instagram at @louisfowler78.
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