Posted 3-15-02

New Child Abuse Act Addresses Disability Issues

The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) is praising Chairman Peter Hockstra and other members of the House Education and the Workforce Select Education subcommittee for its passage of the "Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2002," which will reauthorize and strengthen the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act.

A 1993 study conducted by the Office of Child Abuse and Neglect found that children are given disabilities in 36 percent of the known cases of child maltreatment. Near-fatal maltreatment leave 18,000 children permanently disabled each year. Another study found that more than 90 percent of foster care children had an abnormality in at least one body system. Moreover, it is estimated that children with disabilities are four times more likely to be victims of abuse and neglect than children who do not have a disability "The bill's increased emphasis on primary prevention, including referrals for health and developmental screenings and the provision of quality respite care, will significantly enhance the odds of success for children who experience abuse or neglect or who are at risk of abuse and neglect," said AUCD president Robert Stodden.

The "Keeping Children and Families Safe Act" aims to provide linkages between public Child Protective Services agencies and community-based services that provide health and developmental screenings so that any child for whom there is an open case with Child Protective Services (CPS) would receive such services. Identification and treatment of the medical, developmental and mental health problems of children have been shown to decrease the time a child spends in out of home placement and increase the chances for a stable, more permanent, living situation.

In Title II of the act, more emphasis is placed on the provision of quality respite care as one of five critically important core child abuse and neglect prevention programs. The bill also provides more support for and involvement of parents of children with disabilities as well as for parents with disabilities.

The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) is a network of interdisciplinary centers advancing policy for and with individuals with developmental and other disabilities, their families and communities.