Over 1,000 Children Lost a Parent or Caretaking Grandparent Due to COVID

Tuesday, March 1st, 2022 -- 10:01 AM

(AP) More than 1,000 Wisconsin children lost a parent or caretaking grandparent to COVID-19 through the middle of last year, according to a report by the Wisconsin Office of Children’s Mental Health.

The statistics released earlier this month are from the start of the pandemic through June 2021. A researcher who studies child grief said leaving their trauma unchecked could have drastic consequences, such as depression and suicide.

They are more likely to drop out of school and become victims of sexual abuse. The report says American Indian or Alaska native children in Wisconsin are nearly five times as likely to have lost a caregiver to COVID-19 compared to their white counterparts.

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