NY: Pandemic shows New York is too quick to split families, advocates say
New York Times – March 15, 2023
As the coronavirus pandemic Opens in a new tab descended on New York City in the spring of 2020, the child welfare system, like much of the city apparatus, went into near shutdown. The effects were immediate and stark. With caseworkers limiting home visits, courts open only for emergencies, and closed schools and day care centers no longer watching for signs of abuse, the number of children removed from their homes and placed in foster care dropped by about half. Despite the fears of law enforcement and child welfare officials, an increase in child abuse did not appear to take place. The number of emergency room visits for children did not rise significantly, and, once the city began to reopen, there were no signs of a backlog of unreported cases, officials have said.
https://www.staradvertiser.com/2023/03/15/news/pandemic-shows-new-york-is-too-quick-to-split-families-advocates-say/