Who is mandated to report?

Are all health clinicians mandated to report?

  • Yes.

Who else is a mandated reporter?

  • Hospital personnel
  • Child health associates
  • Physicians in training
  • Dentists
  • Chiropractors
  • Social workers
  • Psychologists
  • Mental health professionals
  • Counselors
  • Emergency medical service providers

For more information, refer to Mandatory Reporters of Child Abuse and Neglect at the Child Welfare Information Gateway.

When is the reporting duty triggered?

What is the standard?

  • A report is required when:
    • A mandated reporter has reasonable cause to know or suspect child abuse or neglect.
    • A reporter has observed a child being subjected to circumstances or conditions that would reasonably result in abuse or neglect.
    • Commercial film and photographic print processors have knowledge of or observe any film, photograph, videotape, negative, or slide depicting a child engaged in an act of sexual conduct.

For more information, refer to Mandatory Reporters of Child Abuse and Neglect at the Child Welfare Information Gateway.

What must be reported?

How does state law define child abuse and neglect for reporting purposes?

  • Reporters must report “child abuse or neglect” as defined by Colorado statute 19-1-103 and any case law and other legal guidance interpreting the statute.
  • “Abuse” or “child abuse or neglect” means an act or omission in one of the following categories that threatens the health or welfare of a child:
    • Any case in which a child exhibits evidence of skin bruising, bleeding, malnutrition, failure to thrive, burns, fracture of any bone, subdural hematoma, soft tissue swelling, or death and either: Such condition or death is not justifiably explained; the history given concerning such condition is at variance with the degree or type of such condition or death; or the circumstances indicate that such condition may not be the product of an accidental occurrence;
    • Any case in which a child is subjected to unlawful sexual behavior as defined in section 16-22-102(9), C.R.S.;
    • Any case in which a child is a child in need of services because the child's parents, legal guardian, or custodian fails to take the same actions to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care, or supervision that a prudent parent would take. The requirements of this subparagraph (III) shall be subject to the provisions of section 19-3-103.
    • Any case in which a child is subjected to emotional abuse. “Emotional abuse” means an identifiable and substantial impairment of the child's intellectual or psychological functioning or development or a substantial risk of impairment of the child's intellectual or psychological functioning or development.
    • Any act or omission described in section 19-3-102(1)(a), (1)(b), or (1)(c);
    • Any case in which, in the presence of a child, or on the premises where a child is found, or where a child resides, a controlled substance, as defined in section 18-18-102(5), C.R.S., is manufactured or attempted to be manufactured;
    • Any case in which a child tests positive at birth for either a schedule I controlled substance, as defined in section 18-18-203, C.R.S., or a schedule II controlled substance, as defined in section 18-18-204, C.R.S., unless the child tests positive for a schedule II controlled substance as a result of the mother's lawful intake of such substance as prescribed;
    • Any case in which a child is subjected to human trafficking of a minor for sexual servitude, as described in section 18-3-504, C.R.S.

For more information, refer to CO4Kids for signs and indicators of:

 

Are child molestation, sexual abuse, rape, statutory rape, incest, intimate partner violence, sexual exploitation and/or trafficking of a minor reportable as child abuse or neglect and if so, how are they defined and what is reportable?

For the most current definitions of abuse and neglect, refer to Colorado Revised Statutes at the Justia US Law website.

How to report:

What is the method of reporting?

  • A mandated reporter who has reasonable cause to know or suspect that a child has been subjected to abuse or neglect or who has observed the child being subjected to circumstances or conditions that would reasonably result in abuse or neglect shall report immediately to the county Department of Human or Social Services, a law enforcement agency, or through the child abuse reporting hotline system as set forth in § 26-5-111. The reporter shall promptly follow up with a written report.
  • A film processor shall report any suspicion of sexual abuse to a law enforcement agency immediately by telephone and shall prepare and send a written report of it with a copy of the film, photograph, videotape, negative, or slide attached within 36 hours of receiving the information concerning the incident.

For more information, refer to Making and Screening Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect at the Child Welfare Information Gateway.

What is the timeline in which to report?

  • A mandated reporter or film processor shall report any suspicion of abuse or neglect immediately.

For more information, refer to Making and Screening Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect at the Child Welfare Information Gateway.

To whom are reports made?

  • The county department shall receive the reports of abuse or neglect.
  • A statewide child abuse reporting hotline system serves as a direct, immediate, and efficient route to the applicable entity responsible for accepting the report and to the applicable entity responsible for responding to an inquiry. It is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

For more information, refer to Making and Screening Reports of Child Abuse and Neglect at the Child Welfare Information Gateway.

State/County Hotline?

  • Colorado Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline (24/7)
  • 1-844-264-5437

Confidentiality:

What federal confidentiality laws apply to health information collected during a Title X visit?

  • Title X regulations 42 CFR 59.11
  • HIPAA 45 CFR 164.502

Is there an exception in federal confidentiality law that allows a clinician to comply with mandatory child abuse reporting laws?

  • Yes.