Child abuse is a social problem in America that has many contributing factors. Factors that contribute to child abuse and neglect include poverty, divorce, substance use, lack of education, stress due to unemployment, mental health issues, teenage parenting, and a history of child abuse in the family. It took decades for doctors to conclude that the parents had violently attacked their children. Child abuse, child labor, juvenile delinquency, and similar social issues have historically been ethical and moral problems, not strictly medical ones. (Helfer, Kempe, & Krugman, 1997). In 1962, the Journal of the American Medical Association published “The Battered Child Syndrome.” The article transforms society's views and given the rediscovery of child abuse as a social problem. Following this article, the US Bureau of Children adopted the first laws requiring doctors to report any suspicion of abuse and neglect to the police or child welfare. In 1974, approximately 60,000 cases were reported. By 1980, the number exceeded one million (Myers JE, 2004). In response to this social problem, the first federal child welfare act, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), was signed into law by President Nixon in 1974. According to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of the Child, article 19, “all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from any form of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in the care of parents, legal guardian or any other person having care of the child” (Detrick, 1999). CAPTA governs child protective services programs across the country by supporting, among others,...... middle of paper... health care services, parent education, home visits, and support groups. Grants also provide for the investigation and management of child abuse and neglect cases. The focus is primarily on sexual abuse, deaths related to child abuse and neglect, and children with disabilities who have suffered maltreatment. This must also meet state requirements to be eligible to receive state CAPTA grants. Funding is awarded to support ongoing research programs to identify, prevent, and treat child abuse and neglect and to collect and distribute data. Projects currently funded are the Child Welfare Information Gateway website, the National Resource Center for Child Protective Services, the National Center for Quality Improvement on Differential Response, the Child Maltreatment Annual Publication, and the Child Maltreatment Initiative. support evidence-based home visits to prevent child maltreatment..