The Latest Child Maltreatment Report Shows Kentucky’s High Rate of Victims Persists

Louisville, KY – The latest national Child Maltreatment report from the Children’s Bureau of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services shows a total of 14,484 child victims of maltreatment in Kentucky during the reporting period (FFY 2023).

While there has been a 28% reduction in child victims of maltreatment from 2019 to 2023, Kentucky has nearly double the national rate (7.4 per 1,000) of child maltreatment at 14.2 per 1,000 children.Young children remain the most vulnerable as victims of abuse or neglect in the Commonwealth, with 30% of total victims under the age of four. Babies under the age of one account for the highest rate of victims (34.6 per 1,000), further emphasizing the urgent need to better support parents of young children during the challenging first year of parenthood.

“With over a decade of commitment to ending child abuse in the Commonwealth, the Kosair for Kids Face It Movement is steadfast in our efforts to bring attention to Kentucky’s high rate of maltreatment while also promoting best practices for prevention. We urge every caring Kentuckian – whether through your local church, school system, nonprofit community partner, or in your neighborhood – to play a role in ensuring every child can grow up healthy, safe, and joyful,” said Barry Dunn, president and CEO of Kosair for Kids, the founder and funder of the Face It Movement.

The Face It Movement offers several tools to promote recognizing and preventing child maltreatment, especially among the most vulnerable population – babies and toddlers. The TEN-4-FACESp Bruising Rule increases recognition of bruising concerns on children under four years old and the newest resource offers ideas to help parents soothe a crying baby.

Further extrapolating the types of maltreatment experienced outlined in the report, in Kentucky 51.5% of substantiated cases of maltreatment were categorized as neglect, 18.7% as physical abuse, 9% as psychological maltreatment, 6.1% as sexual abuse, 1.6% as medical neglect, and .1% as sex trafficking – with 13% of all cases categorized as multiple maltreatment types.

As a data note, due to changes in how child maltreatment types are recorded, the latest report cannot be compared to previous reports.Understanding the risk factors of abuse and neglect gives advocates and leaders key insights into addressing and preventing child maltreatment. In Kentucky, drug (39.1%) and alcohol (14.6%) abuse, domestic violence (15.2%), and inadequate housing (5.4%) were the leading caregiver risk factors in cases of child maltreatment. Concrete family supports, such as housing programs, food assistance, child care, and other economic assistance, are proven supports that help families meet their basic needs, alleviating stress and promoting well-being.“The latest data tells us that 59% of perpetrators of substantiated cases of maltreatment in Kentucky were the child’s mom or dad. Research also tells us that reducing family isolation and stress, promoting help-seeking like therapy or drug counseling, and accessing those concrete supports can boost family well-being and ultimately prevent child maltreatment from occurring,” said Dr. Shannon

Moody, Chief Policy & Strategy Officer of Kentucky Youth Advocates, the backbone organization of the Face It Movement.Keeping children safe from abuse and neglect is an adult responsibility in which everyone can play a role – in the home through strong family bonds, in communities through networks and programs of support, and at the state level through public policy and practice change and budget investments. Efforts in Frankfort by the General Assembly and Governor’s Administration, and in the field by the Department for Community Based Services and community organizations to support families, are moving the data in the right direction, but more work remains.

Kentucky Youth Advocates and the Kosair for Kids Face It Movement are advocating to the 2025 General Assembly for state policy priorities that ensure students have a safe environment to learn that is free from abuse and with appropriate adults and that increase awareness of and ensure appropriate response to the sexual extortion of minors. Learn more about House Bill 36, sponsored by Representative James Tipton, and Senate Bill 73, sponsored by Senator Julie Raque Adams, at kyyouth.org/bill-tracker/.

“We have to hold two realities together. The trendline over time shows substantial progress and yet it is still unacceptable for a single child to ever be abused anywhere, anytime. I carry genuine hope for our kids because Kentucky’s leaders – including the Governor and the leaders in his Administration, General Assembly, Attorney General, and Auditor – all have a track record of prioritizing children impacted by abuse and neglect. With no shortage of caring adults in those decision-making positions, there should also be no shortage of collaboration when it comes to addressing Kentucky’s high rate of child maltreatment. Our kids deserve no less,” said Dr. Terry Brooks, Executive Director of Kentucky Youth Advocates.

Every adult in Kentucky is a mandated reporter of child maltreatment. If you suspect a child is being abused or neglected, call the Child Protection Hotline at 1-877-KYSAFE1.View the full Child Maltreatment 2023 report at www.acf.hhs.gov/cb.