○ Public and private children and youth agencies. ○ Early intervention and developmental services. ○ Courts. ○ Local education agencies. ○ Managed care organizations and private insurers. ○ Hospitals and medical providers. Act 88 Act 88 of 2018 allows the court to appoint a family member temporary guardianship in 90-day increments up to one year when the child’s parent enters a rehabilitation facility for drug or alcohol treatment.(Pennsylvania General Assembly,2018) Act 88 2019 Update. Act 88 Legislative 2019 Update: CPSL (23 Pa. C.S. § 6319) Clarified penalties for failure to report child abuse (Pennsylvania General Assembly, n.d.-a) § 6319. Penalties. A mandated reporter who willfully fails to report suspected child abuse or
to make a referral to the appropriate authorities,commits an offense. The offense is a felony of the third degree if: ● The person or official willfully fails to report. ● The child abuse constitutes a felony of the first degree or higher. ● The person or official has direct knowledge of the nature of the abuse. ● An offense not otherwise specified previously is a misdemeanor of the second degree. If a mandated reporter makes a report to law enforcement or the appropriate county agency in lieu of reporting to ChildLine, this is not an offense for failure to report, as long as the report was made in a good faith effort to comply with therequirements to report.
EXCLUSIONS FROM CHILD ABUSE PER THE CPSL
Exclusion is when substantiating a report not when making a report. Pennsylvania has identified scenarios that should notbe considered child abuse. Pennsylvania statute § 6304 (exclusions Environmental factors No child shall be deemed to be physically or mentally abused based on injuries that result solely from environmental factors such as inadequate housing, furnishings, income, clothing and medical care, that are beyond the control of the parent or person responsible for the child’s welfare with whom the child Practice of religious beliefs If, upon investigation, the county agency determines that a child has not been provided needed medical or surgical care because of sincerely held religious beliefs of the child’s parents or relative within the third degree of consanguinity and with whom the child resides, which beliefs are consistent with those of a bona fide religion, the child shall not be deemed to be physically or mentally abused. In such cases the following shall apply: 1. The county agency shall closely monitor the child and the child’s family and shall seek court-ordered medical intervention when the lack of medical or surgical care threatens the child’s life or long-term health. 2. All correspondence with a subject of the report and the records of the department and the county agency shall not Use of force for supervision Use of control and safety purposes. Subject to subsection (d), the use of reasonable force on or against a child by the child’s own parent or person responsible for the child’s welfare shall not be considered child abuse if any of the following conditions apply: 1. The use of reasonable force constitutes incidental, minor or reasonable physical contact with the child or other actions that are designed to maintain order and control. 2. The use of reasonable force is necessary: 3. To quell a disturbance or remove the child from the scene of a disturbance that threatens physical injury to persons or damage to property; a. Prevent the child from self-inflicted physical harm; Rights of parents Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to restrict the generally recognized existing rights of parents to use reasonable force on or against their children for the purposes of supervision, control and discipline of their children. Such reasonable force shall not constitute child abuse. (Pennsylvania General Assembly n.d.) Example: Spanking a child is a perfect example of parental rights. Many people do not believe in spanking their child or any type physical discipline. It was not long ago when spanking was a generally accepted method of discipline and parents believed a little spanking goes a long way in reprimanding their child. Today not all parents agree on this issue, but Pennsylvania
from child abuse) details the following scenarios thathave been excused from such a determination.
resides. This subsection shall not apply to any child-care service as defined in this chapter, excluding an adoptive parent. Example: If a family lives at the poverty level through no fault of the parents, it is not considered child abuse.
reference child abuse and shall acknowledge the religious basis for the child’s condition. 3. The family shall be referred for general protective services, if appropriate. 4. This subsection shall not apply if the failure to provide needed medical or surgical care causes the death of the child. 5. This subsection shall not apply to any child-care service as defined in this chapter, excluding an adoptive parent. Example: If an individual’s religion does not believe in seeking medical attention for his child who has an upper respiratory infection. This is not considered child abuse unless it results in the death of a child. b. For self-defense or the defense of another individual; or c. To obtain possession of weapons or other dangerous objects or controlled substances or d. Paraphernalia that are on the child or within the control of the child. Example: In the grocery store, you witness a woman (parent) who is upset with her child for climbing on a half-empty shelf. The parent grabs the child’s arm, pulls the child down, and the child falls to the floor and sprains his ankle. This is not child abuse, as the parent or caregiver is using reasonable force to prevent the child from several actions, including the self-inflicted harm of the child falling. believes in the rights of parents to use reasonable force on or against their child in order to maintain control,to supervise, and to discipline. There is a fine line between corporal punishment and child abuse, and each case should be looked at individually on a case by case format. Corporal punishment can be referred to ChildLine and it will be reviewed. A parent may claim it is corporal punishment, but that doesn’t mean it will be not be deemed child abuse. It’s important to consider the following circumstances: ● Was the parent mad when they gave the consequence? ● What part of the body did the spanking occur? ● Did the parent use an object or a hand?
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