Child abuse increase linked to foreclosure crisis, study finds

Contact:
Ed Walz
(202) 657-0685 (office)

For Immediate Release: July 18, 2012

Washington – The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s PolicyLab released Monday a study linking a rise in physical child abuse in the last decade to local mortgage foreclosures. The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, is the largest examination to date of the impact the recession has had on child abuse.

St. Louis Children’s Hospital is a member of a network of 45 children’s hospitals, of which 38 contributed data for the study.

The study, Local macroeconomic trends and hospital admissions for child abuse, 2000 to 2009, found that every 1 percent increase in 90-day mortgage delinquencies over a one-year period was associated with a 3 percent increase in children’s hospital admissions for physical child abuse, and a 5 percent increase in children’s hospital admissions for traumatic brain injuries suspected to be caused by child abuse. The study examined children’s hospital data from 2000 to 2009. In the same hospitals over the same time period, overall injury rates fell.

The study follows a report by First Focus that found one-in-ten U.S. children is directly affected by foreclosure.

In response to the PolicyLab study, First Focus President Bruce Lesley made the following statement:

“What this research shows is that there’s a connection between child abuse and families in financial crisis. Unfortunately, Congress may make the problem worse with cuts to child nutrition, children’s health, childcare, and family tax credits. If Missouri’s leaders in Congress don’t protect these investments today, the danger to kids will increase when parents are pushed into crisis. Lawmakers need to understand that decisions about nutrition, health, and poverty, are also decisions about child abuse and neglect.”

Download
Download PolicyLab’s Local macroeconomic trends and hospital admissions for child abuse, 2000 to 2009 here.
Read PolicyLabs’ press release here.
Download First Focus’s The Ongoing Impact of Foreclosures on Children here.
Download First Focus Campaign for Children’s companion policy recommendations here.

###First Focus is a bipartisan advocacy organization dedicated to making children and families a priority in federal policy and budget decisions. For more information, visit www.firstfocus.net.