Ridgefield Press
KIDS: Rell and magazine say Connecticut is safest state

Mar 25, 2008

Gov. M. Jodi Rell said last week that Connecticut has been named by Parents Magazine as the safest state in the nation for children, due largely to its history of enacting injury-prevention laws and its commitment to educating families about childhood hazards.

Gov. Rell accepted a plaque from Parents associate publisher Brian Gruseke recognizing Connecticut’s achievement.

The magazine ranked states on more than 30 criteria, ranging from booster seat laws to the electronic tracking of convicted sex offenders.

“This is a real achievement for Connecticut and — more importantly — a truly positive sign for the health and well-being of our children,” Gov. Rell said. “Connecticut has been a leader on issue as diverse as childhood immunization rates and the ‘Megan’s Law’ sex offender registry. We take our responsibility to safeguard children very seriously — it is one reason why I continue to push for improvements to these laws and others, why I have supported expanding outreach for our HUSKY health care program to schools and newborns, and why my budgets have focused so intently on preschool and early childhood education programs.

“I very much appreciate this award, which should be shared with the forward-looking legislators, the dedicated state employees and, certainly, the millions of dedicated parents who have done so much through the years to build Connecticut’s reputation for protecting children,” the governor said. “As good as that record is, our goal will be to continue improving.”

Parents said Mississippi ranked as the most dangerous state because it has little child-safety legislation and four times as many children die from injuries there as they do in Connecticut. Other states on Parents 10-best list are: (2) Rhode Island, (3) New Jersey, (4) New York, (5) California, (6) Maine, (7) Pennsylvania, (8) Massachusetts, (9) Maryland and (10) Oregon.

To compile the rankings, Parents analyzed rates of injury and crime and reviewed child-safety legislation in the state. For more details on the rankings of every state and the methodology used in the survey, go to www.parentsmag.com.

© Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers