Child welfare reports and investigations down 18%, says Associated Press

The Associated Press has analyzed records from 36 states’ child welfare agencies and found 400,000 fewer child welfare concerns and 200,000 fewer investigations/assessments in the first nine months of the pandemic compared with two years earlier. In states where data on severity were available, the AP suggests that cases have become “more urgent and complex” during the pandemic, suggesting that fewer reports are not a result of reduced need. The decline in reports is attributed in large part to fewer opportunities for children to be observed in person by other adults, like teachers. #covid-19 #safety