The 2020 Census is underway and it’s critical that we count every child. When we miss young children in the census, it has serious consequences for them, their families, their communities and our nation – with many of those consequences lasting for at least 10 years; most of their childhood.
A fair and accurate decennial census is vital for children with disabilities – and, for every person in Pennsylvania.
Who is at risk of being missed?
The Census Bureau has identified people with disabilities as a hard-to-count population, which means they are at a greater risk of being undercounted in the census.
Communities and groups that are undercounted will lose millions in federal funding and possibly fair share of political representation or federal funding.
Why does it matter?
States use census data to determine representation in Congress, state legislatures, and school boards. As well as, allocate over $800 billion a year in federal funds for key programs that support and protect the rights of children with disabilities:
- education programs like Title I grants and IDEA special education funding for children with disabilities;
- health insurance programs like, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance program;
- community-based organizations that provide independent living services;
- supportive housing programs that provide affordable, accessible rental housing; and
- food and nutrition assistance.
For each child not counted in Pennsylvania, we lost $1,746 in federal funding for Medicaid, CHIP, foster care, adoption, and child care. In the last census, PA undercounted 25,197 kids, resulting in nearly $44 million in lost federal funding.
If we don’t count young children, we don’t count our future.
If there is a child with a disability living in your home on April 1, 2020, that kid counts! #DisabilityCounts2020
Visit CountAllKids.org for more information.