Every state has laws concerning mandated reporters who are required to report suspected abuse, neglect, or cruelty. But what does it mean to be a mandated reporter?
What is Mandated Reporting?
Being a mandated reporter means having a legal obligation to report any reasonable suspicions of child abuse or neglect. This duty is not limited to children alone; mandated reporting extends to elder abuse, dependent adult abuse, domestic violence, and animal cruelty.
Who are Mandated Reporters?
Every state has laws designating who are mandated reporters.
Approximately 48 states—plus the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories of American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands—have laws that designate mandated reporters by profession.
The remaining two states, New Jersey and Wyoming, require ALL persons to report suspected abuse, regardless of profession.
Mandated reporters are often professionals who regularly interact with vulnerable groups, such as teachers, daycare providers, healthcare workers, law enforcement officers, social workers, senior care workers, and veterinarian professionals.
Most mandated reporters are legally required to report multiple kinds of abuse. For example, doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers may identify signs of child abuse, elder abuse, and domestic violence while caring for patients.
Are you a mandated reporter? Use our state-by-state database to find out.
Identifying Abuse and Neglect
Being a mandated reporter means knowing how to identify abuse and neglect. There are many different types of abuse, and each abuse type brings its own identifying signs and symptoms.
As a mandated reporter, you may be required to know how to identify the signs of:
- physical abuse
- mental abuse
- sexual abuse
- online abuse and exploitation
- financial abuse
- neglect
- self-neglect
- animal cruelty
The Reporting Process
Recognizing the signs of abuse is only part of being a mandated reporter. The next responsibility a mandated reporter has is understanding the reporting process.
The Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) is a federal law that requires states to implement mandatory reporting laws for child abuse and neglect. However, the specifics of what must be reported and how to make a report can vary significantly from state to state. There is no centralized reporting process or platform. This decentralized approach means that each state has its individual procedures, which can complicate the reporting process.
In general, reports of suspected abuse or neglect go to local law enforcement and appropriate agencies or state departments. Some states require a phone call followed by a written report as part of the reporting process.
The Importance of Training
Mandated reporter training can help mandated reporters understand what it means to carry out this critical responsibility. In some states, mandated reporter training is required annually, once every two years, or as a pre-licensing obligation for some professionals.
Mandated reporter training can help reporters identify signs of abuse and neglect and provide training on the correct reporting procedures in their state.
We recommend the Mandated Reporter Training platform, which provides online state-specific and profession-specific training courses to help mandated reporters receive the individualized training they need.
Consequences of Failing to Report
Mandated reporting is a legal responsibility. This means failing to report can result in consequences for mandatory reporters.
If you fail to report abuse or neglect, you could face jail time, fines, or both.
The consequences can become more severe if your failure to report results in death or serious injury for the victim.
Knowing what it means to be a mandated reporter and taking that responsibility seriously can help you protect yourself against consequences such as jail time for failing to report.
Protecting the Vulnerable
What being a mandated reporter really means is protecting the most vulnerable in our communities.
More than 500,000 children are estimated to be abused annually in the United States. For these children, abuse can have long-ranging consequences. It can lead to a lifetime of mental health problems, physical problems, and increase the risk of substance abuse disorders and risky or violent behavior in the future.
For nearly 2,000 children every year, child abuse is fatal.
Children aren’t the only vulnerable populations that need your protection. An estimated 1 in 10 elderly adults has experienced some form of elder abuse, while 1 in 3 women and 1 in 4 men have experienced violence at the hands of an intimate partner.
Being a mandated reporter means you have a responsibility to know the signs of abuse and how to report, so you can protect the people who need it most.
