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Home > Practice Areas > Child Protection > Facts and Figures

 
 

Fact-a-Day about Abuse and Neglect for Child Protection Month

In recognition of April as Child Abuse and Prevention Month, CWLA is sharing a fact about abuse, neglect, prevention, and related topics each day. Thanks to CWLA's efforts in previous years, the fourth Friday in April (April 23 in 2010) is recognized as Children's Memorial Flag Day to direct attention to the tragedy of violent child deaths and reduce the number of these deaths. The flag, designed by a 16-year-old in California, is shown at left. More general statistics about the well-being of the nation's children, as well as information for each state, is available through the 2010 National and State Facts Sheets, prepared by the CWLA Advocacy Team.

Fact-a-Day for the month of April:
  • April 1:
    In 2007, about 3.2 million allegations of child abuse and neglect were made to child protective services agencies.1
  • April 2:
    The 3.2 million allegations of maltreatment in 2007 represented 5.8 million children, almost 8% of the under-18 population.2
  • April 3:
    Of these 3.2 million allegations, 2,085,443 reports were referred for investigation, as reported by 37 states.3
  • April 4:
    More than 25 percent (25.2%) of the investigations determined that at least one child was a victim of abuse or neglect.4
  • April 5:
    During 2007, about 794,000 children in the 50 states, DC, & Puerto Rico were determined to be victims of abuse or neglect.5
  • April 6:
    In 2008, 3.3 million referrals involving 6 million kids were received by CPS agencies. 23.7% of investigations reported maltreatment.6
  • April 7:
    57.9% of the referrals came from professionals - teachers, law enforcement, social services staff - who worked with the child.7
  • April 8:
    More than one-half of 2008's child victims (51.3%) were girls. Racial breakdown: 45.1% white, 16.6% black, 20.8% Hispanic.8
  • April 9:
    Nearly one-third (32.6%) of the abuse and neglect victims were younger than 4. An additional 23.6% were between 4 and 7.9
  • April 10:
    About 1,740 children died due to abuse or neglect in 2008; this is 2.33 per 100,000 children. Neglect alone caused 31.9% of deaths.10
  • April 11:
    More than one-fifth of maltreatment victims (20.9%) and 3.6% of nonvictims were placed in foster care in 2008.11
  • April 12:
    In 2008, 43.6 per 1,000 children in the population (about 3.3 million) received preventive services. In 2007, it was 3.8 million.12
  • April 13
    The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) has 3 parts: state grants, discretionary funds, and community-based grants.13
  • April 14
    CAPTA, first passed by Congress in 1974, is due to be reauthorized this year. CWLA recommends increasing funding to $241 million.14
  • April 15
    Another federal funding source for prevention & preservation services is the Promoting Safe & Stable Families Program (PSSF).15
  • April 16
    PSSF has mandatory and discretionary funds. Discretionary, though authorized at $200 million, has never received full funding.16
  • April 17
    CAPTA could better address child abuse, neglect, & deaths if it were a higher priority. More funds would make a profound impact.17
  • April 18
    PSSF is really the only federal money to keep families intact. But in 2008, it was reduced by $25 million. It needs full funding.18
  • April 19
    Parental addiction is a big factor in child abuse & neglect; studies suggest it affects 40-80% of child welfare families.19
  • April 20
    85% of states said substance abuse was 1 of 2 major problems exhibited by families in which maltreatment was suspected.20
  • April 21
    Abused & neglected kids from substance-abusing families enter foster care more often & stay longer than kids from clean families.21
  • April 22
    April 23 is the 12th anniversary of Children's Memorial Flag Day, which brings attention to the tragedy of violent child deaths.22
  • April 23
    The Children's Memorial Flag, created by a 16-year-old student, honors each child lost and raises public awareness.23
  • April 24
    Prevent Child Abuse America started the Pinwheels for Prevention Campaign to change how people think about prevention.24
  • April 25
    The blue ribbon campaign to combat child abuse was begun in 1989 by a Virginia grandmother whose grandson died from abuse.25
  • April 26
    1983 was the first year April was proclaimed National Child Abuse Prevention Month.26
  • April 27
    Previously, Congress named June 6-12, 1982, as National Child Abuse Prevention Week.27
  • April 28
    Formal child protection started 1875, when the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children was established in New York.28
  • April 29
    Recent research estimates the nationwide costs of child abuse and neglect to be $103.8 billion each year.29
  • April 30
    High quality early childhood experiences for at-risk children - prevention services - saves $7 for every $1 invested.30


  1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. (2009). Child Maltreatment 2007. Retrieved November 5, 2009, from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm07table3_2.htm. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Back
  2. Ibid. There were about 73.9 million children under age 18 in the United States in 2007. U.S. Census Bureau. (2008). National Sex and Age (NC-EST2007-02). In National Population Estimates-Characteristics. Retrieved November 10, 2008, from http://www.census.gov/popest/national/asrh/NC-EST2007/NC-EST2007-02.xls. Washington, DC: Author. Back
  3. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. (2009). Child Maltreatment 2007. Retrieved November 5, 2009, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm07/table2_1.htm. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Back
  4. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. (2009). Child Maltreatment 2007. Retrieved March 31, 2010, from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm07/summary.htm. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Back
  5. Ibid. Back
  6. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. (2010). Child Maltreatment 2008. Retrieved April 5, 2010, from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm08/summary.htm. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.Back
  7. Ibid. Back
  8. Ibid. Back
  9. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. (2010). Child Maltreatment 2008. Retrieved April 5, 2010, from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm08/figure3_3.htm. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Back
  10. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration on Children, Youth, and Families. (2010). Child Maltreatment 2008. Retrieved April 5, 2010, from www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/pubs/cm08/summary.htm. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Back
  11. Ibid. Back
  12. Ibid. Back
  13. CWLA. (2010). Preventing child abuse and neglect. 2010 Legislative Agenda for Children and Families. Retrieved April 9, 2010, from www.cwla.org/advocacy/2010legagenda.htm. Arlington, VA: Author. Back
  14. CWLA. (2010). CWLA's Vision for Prevention. 2010 Legislative Agenda for Children and Families. Retrieved April 9, 2010, from www.cwla.org/advocacy/2010legagenda.htm. Arlington, VA: Author. Back
  15. CWLA. (2010). CWLA's Vision for Permanency. 2010 Legislative Agenda for Children and Families. Retrieved April 9, 2010, from www.cwla.org/advocacy/2010legagenda.htm. Arlington, VA: Author. Back
  16. Ibid. Back
  17. For more, see CWLA's Vision for Prevention in the 2010 Legislative Agenda for Children and Families, www.cwla.org/advocacy/2010legagenda.htm. Back
  18. For more, see CWLA's Vision for Permanency in the 2010 Legislative Agenda for Children and Families, www.cwla.org/advocacy/2010legagenda.htm. Back
  19. Rubenstein, G. (2003). Safe and sound: Models for collaboration between the child welfare & addiction treatment systems. New York: Arthur Liman Policy Institute of the Legal Action Center. Back
  20. National Center on Child Abuse Prevention Research. (2001). Current trends in child abuse prevention, reporting, and fatalities: The 1999 fifty state survey. Chicago: Prevent Child Abuse America. Back
  21. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1999). Blending perspectives and building common ground: A report to Congress on substance abuse and child protection. Retrieved November 10, 2009, from http://aspe.hhs.gov/HSP/subabuse99/subabuse.htm. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Back
  22. For more, see http://www.cwla.org/advocacy/memorialflag.htm. Back
  23. For more, see http://www.cwla.org/advocacy/memorialflag.htm. Back
  24. For more, see http://www.pinwheelsforprevention.org. Back
  25. Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2010). History of National Child Abuse Prevention Month. Retrieved April 20, 2010, from www.childwelfare.gov/preventing/preventionmonth/history.cfm. Back
  26. Ibid. Back
  27. Ibid. Back
  28. CWLA. (2010). Preventing child abuse and neglect. 2010 Legislative Agenda for Children and Families. Retrieved April 9, 2010, from www.cwla.org/advocacy/2010legagenda.htm. Arlington, VA: Author. Back
  29. Wang, C.T., & Holton, J. (2007). Total Estimated Cost of Child Abuse and Neglect in the United States: Economic Impact Study. Chicago: Prevent Child Abuse America. Back
  30. Heckman, J. J. (2000). Policies to Foster Human Capital, JCPR Working Paper 154. Chicago: Northwestern University and University of Chicago Joint Center for Poverty Research. Back



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