By TIM TALLEY, Associated Press Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma ranks near the bottom in the financial security of its families according to a nationwide study released Monday that says the state needs to improve how it encourages residents to build and protect their assets so they can withstand unexpected medical crises.

While Oklahoma performs well in housing measures, the Assets & Opportunity Scorecard by the nonprofit Corporation for Enterprise Development in Washington says, it is falling behind in financial assets and health care — ranking 45th in the number of uninsured low-income parents and 44th in employees insured by their employer. The report put Oklahoma at 44th in net worth and income poverty.

David Blatt, director of policy for the anti-poverty, pro-education Oklahoma Policy Institute in Oklahoma City, said the low rankings reflect the number of low-wage jobs in the state, the poor savings habits of Oklahoma residents and the high number of low- and middle-income citizens who have no health insurance, estimated at more than 600,000.

"A lot of people really are living paycheck to paycheck and really haven't found the ways to build up the safety net," Blatt said. "Even college graduates on average have a debt of $20,000 when they graduate."

The report found that 22.7 percent of Oklahoma households live in "asset poverty," meaning they lack the financial assets to live at the poverty level for three months if they lost their jobs and had no income. Blatt estimated that an Oklahoma family would need a total of about $5,500 to live at the poverty level for three months.

Over half of those households, 12 percent of the total population, were identified as being in "extreme asset poverty," meaning they have zero or negative net worth and have no cushion in the case of job loss, a major injury or illness or the breakup of a family.

Blatt cited the state's high rate of uninsured people, saying lots of residents "incur substantial medical expenses."

"We need a commitment to develop public policies that are aimed at protecting financial assets, expanding education opportunities and improving health care," said Matt Guillory, executive director of the policy institute.

Oklahoma received its best ranking in the area of housing and homeownership and ranked among the top fifth of states for small business ownership.

"The cost of owning a home or renting consumes a lesser share of family incomes than it does in many other places," Blatt said.

Kathy McLaughlin, director of programs for the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, said many of the state's economic development programs are based on strengthening assets such as home and business ownership.

"It is encouraging to see Oklahoma performing well on some of these measures, although the current economic downturn is certainly placing great strain on these critical assets," McLaughlin said.

The report recommends that state lawmakers develop programs to help the low-income population build their assets, increase funding for public schools and match savings to pay college tuition and other costs to improve the state's below-average educational outcomes.

It also recommends that the state limit practices like the high interest rates charged by payday and other short-term lenders.

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