If you’re a child in the 63107 zip code in north St. Louis, you’re 17 times more likely to have been born with little or no prenatal care than if you reside in 63017 in west St. Louis County, and seven times more likely now to be living in alternative care away from your family. And, in 63107 there’s almost a two-thirds chance your family lives below the federal poverty level; in 63017 only 2 in 100 children live below the poverty level.

These figures typify the wide disparities in the health and well-being of children across the St. Louis bi-state region, according to the newly released 2005 edition of the Children of Metropolitan St. Louis report published by Vision for Children at Risk, a non-profit agency dedicated to improving the health and welfare of local children.

The report shows that 3 in 10 area children, or 172,000, live in locations where risk factors are at severe levels. In addition, minority children are more likely to face severe risk; 75% of zip codes with above-average minority populations fall into the severe risk category. The number of children living in areas of severe risk has grown by 30,000 since the last Children of Metropolitan St. Louis report was published in 2003, with the increase attributed to rising levels of poverty.

“These wide gaps in child well-being are a major concern for our region,” said Richard Patton, executive director of Vision for Children at Risk. “When children are left behind because we don’t meet their basic needs for a healthy upbringing, our region pays for it. The cost is lost human potential as well as remedial costs from crime, chronic health conditions and an uneducated workforce.”

“The leadership, resources and support of the civic, philanthropic and corporate sectors are needed to improve the future of our region by investing in children and youth. Providing children with quality opportunities to learn, grow and develop ensures that they will become healthy, productive members of our society. That is essential to creating a more viable and sustainable St. Louis region,” Patton said.