Reports of abuse and neglect continue to increase in the United States, while confirmed victims of such maltreatment are at another record low, according to the most recent data published by the federal government. There were nearly 4.4 million referrals to child protective services in fiscal 2023, as reported in 2025, a 3% increase from the previous year’s data. The number of confirmed victims of abuse and neglect was down 2% in the same time period.
- The report found that children younger than 1 year old have the highest rate of victimization at 21.0 per 1,000 children of the same age in the national population.
- The victimization rate for girls is 7.9 per 1,000 girls in the population, which is higher than boys at 6.9 per 1,000 boys in the population.
Child fatalities are the most tragic consequence of maltreatment. For FFY 2023, a national estimate of 2,000 children died from abuse and neglect at a rate of 2.73 per 100,000 children in the population. Children younger than 1 representing 44.0 percent of child fatalities; a fatality rate of 24.11 per 100,000 children in that age range. Boys have a higher child fatality rate at 3.15 per 100,000 boys in the population when compared with girls at 2.30 per 100,000 girls in the population.
