Mandate leaves half of child deaths unreviewed since 2020
The $242,000 allocated for the Child Death Review program in the latest state budget is a fraction of the $2.5 million Shapiro had sought, the Associated Press reported. The program is designed to help counties fulfill a legal requirement to review all deaths of people under age 21.
County teams are required to analyze the circumstances surrounding each death to identify patterns that could help prevent future deaths, the AP reported. But since 2020, only half of all eligible deaths have been reviewed. County officials said they are overwhelmed by the demands of the mandate, a requirement many have struggled to keep up with.
The Shapiro administration said it was disappointed by the funding level, according to the AP. It had planned to revamp the program with new state-level staff, grants for county teams, and a public education campaign. Much of that plan appears unachievable given the limited funding available, the administration said.