Rhode Island is No. 1 in child welfare spending. If only state had the best system to justify it.

Rhode Island is No. 1 in child welfare spending. If only state had the best system to justify it.

Rhode Island ranks number one in spending per impoverished child — $11,244 — according to the latest child welfare data. (Stock photo by Os Tartarouchos via Getty Images)If the fact that Rhode Island’s child welfare system wastes lives isn’t enough to prompt real change, consider the staggering waste of money. New data show Rhode Island spending on child welfare is proportionately the highest rate in the nation — well over triple the national av…