Short-Term Effects of Tax Credits on Rates of Child Maltreatment Reports in the United States

Kovski, Nicole; Hill, Heather D.; Mooney, Stephen J.; Rivara, Frederick P.; Rowhani‐Rahbar, Ali

doi:10.1542/peds.2021-054939

Cited by 25 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…First, rigorously studying the effect of income support policies on CAN is challenging owing to difficulties with randomizing income supports. Several previous studies [3][4][5][6][7][8]28,30 have used approaches that rely on changes in public assistance programs.…”

Section: Jama Network Open | Pediatricsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, a more generous Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and higher minimum wages have been shown to reduce child maltreatment and foster care entry. [3][4][5][6][7][8] However, these studies are unable to separately estimate the effects of income and those of employment-related decisions, such as whether, how much, and when to work. These employment decisions can also affect child maltreatment, which can confound the estimated effects of income support.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Association of Expanded Child Tax Credit Payments With Child Abuse and Neglect Emergency Department Visits

Bullinger

Boy

2023

JAMA Netw Open

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ImportancePoverty has long been associated with a higher risk for child maltreatment, and recent research suggests that income support policies are associated with reduced child abuse and neglect. However, income supports tied to employment cannot separate the associations of income from those of employment.ObjectiveTo estimate the short-term association of universal and unconditional income payments to parents with child abuse and neglect.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsIn this cross-sectional study, variation in the timing of the 2021 expanded child tax credit (CTC) advance payments was used to determine whether receiving unconditional income is associated with child abuse and neglect. A fixed-effects approach was used to compare child abuse and neglect before and after payments were made in 2021. The study compared 2021 trends with the same period in 2018 and 2019, during which no CTC payments were made. Participants were pediatric emergency department (ED) patients identified as experiencing child abuse or neglect at a level I pediatric hospital system in the Southeastern US from July through December 2021. Data were analyzed from July to August 2022.ExposuresTiming in the disbursement of the expanded CTC advance payments.Main Outcomes and MeasuresDaily child abuse and neglect-related ED visits.ResultsDuring the study period, there were 3169 ED visits related to child abuse or neglect. The 2021 advance payments of the expanded CTC were associated with fewer child abuse and neglect-related ED visits. There was a decrease in these ED visits in the 4 days following the advance CTC payments, although the reduction was not significant (point estimate, −0.22; 95% CI, −0.45 to 0.01; P = .06). There were significant reductions in such ED visits among male children (point estimate, −0.40; 95% CI, −0.75 to −0.06; P = .02) and non-Hispanic White children (point estimate, −0.69; 95% CI, −1.22 to −0.17; P = .01). These reductions did not persist, however.Conclusions and RelevanceThese findings suggest that federal income supports to parents are associated with immediate reductions in child abuse and neglect-related ED visits. These results are important for discussions of making the temporary expansion of the CTC permanent and are applicable to income support policies more broadly.

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Section: Jama Network Open | Pediatricsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association of Expanded Child Tax Credit Payments With Child Abuse and Neglect Emergency Department Visits

Bullinger

Boy

2023

JAMA Netw Open

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“…For example, we would expect reports of child maltreatment to dramatically increase as schools returned to in-person learning and children had more frequent contact with mandatory reporters. Based upon the recent findings of Kovski and colleagues (2022) regarding immediate decreases in child maltreatment reports following the distribution of EITC and CTC payments, we would also expect to see a declining trend in child maltreatment following the distribution of expanded CTC payments during COVID-19. A more nuanced examination of maltreatment rates during the span of the COVID-19 pandemic will help us understand what factors may have protected families or placed them at greater risk.3.…”

mentioning

confidence: 94%

“…There is growing evidence that economic and concrete supports reduce child abuse and neglect (Maguire-Jack et al, 2021). In fact, a more recent paper using data from prior to COVID-19 showed that in the weeks following child tax credit distributions, reports of child maltreatment decreased (Kovski et al, 2022). We have every reason to believe based on prior research evidence that the mechanisms driving these decreases were also evident during the pandemic; unfortunately, we do not have the empirical data yet to declare that to be the case.…”

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confidence: 99%

Child Maltreatment During the Pandemic

2022

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What happened with child abuse and neglect during the pandemic? Emergency department and child welfare data suggest a decline in reports; however other sources of data suggest that risk for abuse and neglect remained high during COVID-19. In this commentary, the authors highlight the complicated, and at times contradictory, evidence as to what occurred with child abuse and neglect during the pandemic. The commentary concludes with suggestions for future research.

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“…Furthermore, policy level initiatives aimed at supporting low income families have the potential to reduce the rates of child abuse and maltreatment, highlighting how SES may be an upstream target amenable to intervention. For example, for every $1000 increase per child in the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and Child Tax Credit, state level rates of reported maltreatment decreased by an estimated 5% [ 35 ••]. Refundable EITCs were responsible for an estimated 13% reduction in abusive head trauma admissions in children younger than 2 years of age [ 36 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Socioeconomic Factors and Pediatric Injury

Trinidad

Kotagal

2023

Curr Trauma Rep

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Purpose of Review The goal of this review is to describe how socioeconomic status (SES) is evaluated in the pediatric trauma literature and further consider how differences in SES can lead to inequities in pediatric injury. Recent Findings Insurance status, area-level income, and indices of socioeconomic deprivation are the most common assessments of socioeconomic status. Children from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds experience higher rates of firearm-related injuries, motor vehicle-related injuries, and violence-related injuries, contributing to inequities in morbidity and mortality after pediatric injury. Differences in SES may also lead to inequities in post-injury care and recovery, with higher rates of readmission, recidivism, and PTSD for children from socioeconomically disadvantaged backgrounds. Summary Additional research looking at family-level measures of SES and more granular measures of neighborhood deprivation are needed. SES can serve as an upstream target for interventions to reduce pediatric injury and narrow the equity gap.

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Short-Term Effects of Tax Credits on Rates of Child Maltreatment Reports in the United States

Cited by 25 publications

References 28 publications

Association of Expanded Child Tax Credit Payments With Child Abuse and Neglect Emergency Department Visits

Association of Expanded Child Tax Credit Payments With Child Abuse and Neglect Emergency Department Visits

Child Maltreatment During the Pandemic

Socioeconomic Factors and Pediatric Injury

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