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Between 37,000 and 43,000 children in the United States have lost at least one parent to COVID-19, a “staggering” 20% increase in parental loss over a typical year, according to a USC study released Thursday.<\/p>\n
The scope of deaths “is forever imprinting the lives of tens of thousands of young Americans,” said study co-author Emily Smith-Greenaway, an associate professor of sociology and spatial sciences at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. “It’s a social crisis that merits far greater attention, as well as a collective response to slow the tide of loss that’s washing over children.”<\/p>\n
Three-fourths of children who lost a parent were adolescents, and one in four were children younger than 10.<\/p>\n
Black children have also suffered disproportionately from parental bereavement. Although they comprise 14% of children in the U.S., they make up 20% of those who’ve lost a parent to COVID-19, according to the study, which appeared this week in JAMA Pediatrics.<\/p>\n
The analysis used COVID-19 deaths and excess death counts from February 2020 to February 2021. Researchers estimated the expected number of affected children for each COVID-19 death, allowing them to track parental bereavement as the pandemic evolved.<\/p>\n
Employing demographic modeling and information about kinship networks of white and Black individuals in the U.S., the scientists used a “parental bereavement multiplier” to estimate the scope of parental bereavement. Finally, they calculated parental losses during a typical year and compared them to the larger losses due to the pandemic.<\/p>\n
Although 80% of COVID-19 deaths occur in people over the age of 65, younger adults — many with children — have also died in large numbers from the virus. The study found for every 13 COVID-19 deaths, one child experiences the loss of a parent.<\/p>\n
Smith-Greenaway and her colleagues say their results demonstrate yet another reason to aggressively reduce COVID-19 deaths among all age groups. They point to prior research that shows children who lose a parent are at elevated risk of traumatic grief, depression, poor educational outcomes and unintentional death or suicide.<\/p>\n
Sudden parental death — like those caused by COVID-19 — can be particularly traumatizing for children, the researchers said. The fact that these losses are occurring at a time of social isolation and widespread economic hardship may leave many children who experience the death of a parent without necessary bereavement support.<\/p>\n
“Considerable research has documented the possible irreversible impact of the pandemic for youth, including the long-term educational, economic and mental health consequences,” Smith-Greenaway said. “These consequences may be exaggerated among children who have lost family members and can persist for many years, even into adulthood.”<\/p>\n
The study authors say the true impact of COVID-19 deaths on young people is far greater when taking into account the loss of many other relatives and community members, including neighbors, community leaders and teachers. They say evidence-based interventions should be widely available to support bereaved children.<\/p>\n
More broadly, they call on the federal government to task an existing institution with collecting the names of children who have lost a parent or primary caregiver and connecting them with services — similar to the effort to support bereaved families after the 9\/11 tragedy.<\/p>\n
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