Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolution

Floor Speech

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Mrs. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to join my colleague from Arizona, Senator Sinema, in introducing legislation to support the ongoing operation of the national child abuse hotline, which is currently operated by Childhelp, a national non-profit. Of all the major national help hotlines, the crisis line for child abuse and neglect is the only one without a Federal authorization and dedicated funding. Our bill, the National Child Abuse Help Hotline Act of 2021, would give the Administration for Children and Families the authority to award funding to increase Federal support for this important hotline.

Tragically, on average, five children die every day from child abuse and neglect. According to the most recent Department of Health and Human Services' Child Maltreatment Report, 656,000 children were victims of child abuse and neglect in 2019, and a heartbreaking 1,770 children died--including three young children in Maine. The many stresses created by the COVID-19 pandemic have exacerbated the risks for vulnerable children, and I fear that the data from 2020 and 2021 will show a worsening crisis.

According to the CDC, ``heightened stress, school closures, loss of income, and social isolation resulting from . . . . the COVID-19 pandemic have increased the risk for child abuse and neglect.'' As Michelle Fingerman of Childhelp, the current operator of the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline, details: ``There is a wide range of fallout from pandemic anxiety and school shutdowns. There is more abuse already occurring in homes where caregivers are melting down from the stress, children are trapped at home with abusers, schools and daycare are closed, and therapists and other frontline providers are now more difficult to access.''

Despite these risks, official reports to child protection agencies have declined across the country, in some places by as much as seventy percent. But, fewer official reports does not mean abuse and neglect are on the decline. To the contrary, less in-person contact between children and mandated reporters like teachers, physicians, and coaches is one explanation for this reporting decline. Additionally, while the number of emergency department visits related to child abuse and neglect decreased in 2020, the percentage of visits severe enough to require hospitalization increased. Better access to prevention and intervention services can help stop these troubling trends.

The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline is a resource that is accessible to children and families across the country, especially while many children are still not attending school in person full-time. A simple phone call or text to the hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child can connect people with those who can come to a child's aid before the unimaginable occurs. The hotline saw 11,573 contacts in May 2020, which is more than 40 percent higher than during May 2019. Childhelp's text and online chat platforms also experienced a significant volume increase last year. For the past few years, Congress has appropriated $1 million to pilot these platforms, and our legislation would help the grantee chosen by ACF expand its reach to more children and families.

The helpline serves a wide range of individuals in every single state--at-risk children, distressed parents seeking crisis intervention, and concerned individuals who suspect that child abuse may be occurring. In Maine, where one in every 71 children is a victim of abuse, the National Child Abuse Hotline assisted nearly 200 callers in 2019. Those in need are connected--either on the phone, text, or online chat--with social workers who can offer confidential crisis intervention, information, and referrals to emergency, social service, and support resources.

The National Child Abuse Help Hotline Act would provide a meaningful Federal investment to protect children across the country, authorizing $2 million annually for the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) to award a grant to a nonprofit entity to support a 24-hour, national, toll-free telephone hotline. That hotline will get information and assistance to victims of child abuse or neglect, parents, caregivers, mandated reporters, and other concerned community members. This will not interfere with any state-mandated reporter hotlines and will bolster those state efforts. In fact, the current operator has more than 80 community partners in just Maine alone.

Mr. President, child abuse is preventable, and the helpline's prevention and intervention activities are both successful and well- documented. Consistent Federal support for the National Child Abuse Hotline will improve our ability to reach children of all ages, as well as parents or caregivers, during the pandemic and beyond. I urge my colleagues to support the adoption of this important legislation that could save lives.

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