A "significant" equity issue remains in the Garden State, according to Advocates for Children of New Jersey, with about a third (32%) of Black and Hispanic babies being raised in poverty, compared to only 6% of whites.
The boom took a while to get going because many families lost income at the outset of the pandemic, and there was significant uncertainty about how the virus behaved and how it might affect childbirth.
The Garden State consistently beats national averages for each early learning metric, but New Jersey babies' health, while good compared to the rest of the United States, could improve.