The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is taking steps to improve early childhood development in the state.
The update to the Early Childhood Action Plan is intended to ensure all children get a healthy start in life and develop to their full potential in safe and nurturing families, schools and communities.
The updated plan focuses on four key areas -- healthy babies, food security, permanent families for children in foster care and high-quality early learning.
State health officials say North Carolina ranked as the 10th worst state in the nation in infant mortality in 2021, and about one in six children is facing hunger.
Additionally, thousands of children in North Carolina spend months or years in the foster care system while waiting for permanent placement.
North Carolina is also in the middle of a child care crisis that was only made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.
