Report: Child Homelessness at Highest Point Ever; California, Mississippi and Alabama Given Worst Ratings

According to a comprehensive state-by-state report issued by the National Center on Family Homelessness, one in every 30 children living in the United States is homeless. This alarming statistic means a total of 2.5 million children -- an all-time high.

The major causes for the epidemic include, the report said, a general lack of affordable housing across the nation, racial disparities, the challenges of single parenting, as well as the continuing impacts of the great recession.

The report contained a composite index ranking the states on the extent of child homelessness, efforts to combat it, and the overall level of child well-being. States with the best scores were Minnesota, Nebraska and Massachusetts. At the bottom of the list were Alabama, Mississippi, and California.

The problem is particularly bad in California, which has one-eighth of the U.S. population, yet accounts for more than one-fifth of the homeless children with a number of nearly 527,000.

Shahera Hyatt, director of the California Homeless Youth Project, feels that the core of the problem is the state's high cost of living, coupled with insufficient affordable housing. Hyatt explained why California has not invested in the problem, The Associated Press reports.

"People think, 'Of course we are not letting children and families be homeless,' so there's a lot of disbelief," Hyatt said.

As there are multiple causes for the current situation of child homelessness, the report points toward several possible ways to alleviate the problem including parenting support for mothers, the identification and treatment of major depression in mothers, services that incorporate trauma-informed care, and safe affordable housing matched with education and employment opportunities.

“Children are resilient and can recover from homelessness, but time is precious in their young lives,” the report said stressing that services for children “must be provided as soon as families enter emergency shelter or housing so that weeks and months critical to their development are not lost forever.”