In 2021, Child Abuse & Neglect Decreased To A Five-Year Low

In 2021, 8.1 children per 1,000 in the United States were identified as victims of maltreatment (child abuse and neglect), an 11.0% reduction from 9.1 per 1,000 in 2017. During the same period, the number of children determined to be victims of maltreatment declined by 12.7%, from 673,630 in 2017, to 588,229 children in 2021. Both the rate and the number of children affected were at a five-year low.

In 2021, over 3.0 million children (40.7 children per 1,000) were the subject of a child welfare agency response . . .