What Has COVID-19 Done to Child Welfare

The evidence is unclear; some see the pandemic as a chance to revamp systems toward prevention

This is the fourth story in a series produced under a USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism 2020 National Fellowship, which focuses on the stories of vulnerable communities. The first story explored how COVID-19 has affected young adults "aging out" of the foster care system; the second focused on grandparents raising kin; and the third was on how the pandemic impacted parents and reunification efforts.

The pandemic, its associated isolation, and economic challenges prompted child welfare to sound the alarm: COVID-19 will likely result in a spike in child abuse