Since the Democrats are jumping aboard the mandatory reporting ship that will eventually sink with a dramatic spike in calls to child protective services about the littlest of delusional transgressions, I will engage the Republican Members of Congress to ask them to address legislation to end Medicaid fraud in child welfare.

Penn State Incident Spurs Flurry of Legislative Proposals

In the wake of the recent Penn State incident, where a 10 year-old was allegedly raped and the adults, including coaches and school personnel, failed to act, legislators are taking aim at child protection laws. Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Sen. Robert Casey (D-Pa.), Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.), and Rep. Karen Bass (D-Calif.) have in the past week sponsored legislation aimed at strengthening child maltreatment reporting laws.

The bills generally expand reporting requirements to the general population and enact criminal penalties for failure to report. They also clarify that reports must be made to the appropriate agency, either law enforcement or child enforcement, which is meant to address the lack of clarity which currently exists within some state laws. Some state laws are vague enough that it leaves them open to the interpretation that internal reporting is sufficient.

Whether these proposed changes would significantly improve the child protection reporting system, is a matter of debate.

All states have mandatory reporting laws for professionals who come into contact with children, such as police officers, teachers, and doctors. And, 18 states, as well as Puerto Rico, already have laws that require all persons to report suspected maltreatment.

Some of the legislative proposals make the failure to report criminally punishable, either by misdemeanor or felony. This could have serious implications, such as professionals flooding the system with reports because they fear being held liable. It could also affect victims of domestic violence, who sometimes fail to report because they are being psychologically or physically intimidated by their partners.

Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, (D-Texas), co-chair of the House Congressional Children’s Caucus, released a statement saying she plans to introduce the Federal Zero Tolerance of Child Sexual Abuse Act of 2011, which would curtail funding for institutions guilty of failure to report maltreatment. The legislation will include penalties for government entities, as well as nonprofits.

Child protection laws should be shored up through additional training and education about child maltreatment, especially for those who regularly work with or come into contact regularly with children. A recent study published in Academic Pediatrics found that primary health providers under-reported maltreatment in 21 percent of cases.

A general societal understanding of child abuse might go a long way in helping create a safer atmosphere for children. Child abuse reporting can be said to be both under- and over-reported. That's because, in some cases, well-meaning adults call hotlines with allegations that don’t rise to the level of maltreatment. On the other hand, cases that should be called in go unreported because people fear getting involved or fear the child will be removed from their home.

Sen. Casey’s Speak Up to Protect Every Kid Act (S.1877) contains education provisions to address these challenges, as well as a mechanism for gauging states’ progress.

On top of the slew of federal bills, state legislators are also weighing in. Virginia Del. Robert G. Marshall (R-Manassas) has proposed legislation to expand persons required to report under state law. However, the patchwork of state and federal efforts could become misaligned and problematic.

Reporting issues are extremely complex and changes in current law should be examined for unintended consequences. In order to explore the issues, Rep. George Miller (D-Calif.), the senior Democrat on the House Education and the Workforce Committee has requested of Chairman John Kline (R-Minn.) that a hearing be held. The hearing has been set for Dec. 13.