Care for Children with Special Needs In the United States, approximately one out of five children – a total of more than 12 million children – have special health or developmental needs. Approximately 1.5 million children and youths in the United States have severe disabilities. Low-income children are more likely to have significant problems with their health and development than their peers who are not living in poverty. Parents play critical roles in the care of children with special health needs, as shown in studies of children with epilepsy, asthma, and diabetes. The emotional support provided during the time parents are able to be with their children is as important as their instrumental support. The more frequent medical care and attention required by children with health conditions or special learning needs result in increased pressure on their parents. Yet we found that families with the greatest needs faced the worst working conditions. Sixty percent of working parents who had two or more children with a chronic conditions at times had neither sick leave no vacation leave, thereby experiencing double jeopardy. Thirty-seven percent of these parents, also lacking any flexibility, were at times in multiple jeopardy. Among families who had one child with a chronic health condition, 42 percent found themselves at times in double jeopardy, and 25 percent in multiple jeopardy. At least one in thirteen American children is estimated to have a learning disability, and in any given year, one in nineteen children in the public schools receives services for an identified learning disability. Children with learning disabilities are far more likely to fail a class or drop out of school. They are less likely to enroll in postsecondary school, and are more likely to be either underemployed or unemployed and more likely to get lower wages. As a result of stigmatization, children with learning disabilities often face social and well as academic challenges, and have fewer peers they can turn to for help. Early intervention and parental support – such as extra help with homework and advising from specialists - make a difference in helping children with learning disabilities succeed. But in our studies, more than half of parents of children with school problems reported that working conditions made it difficult for them to meet their children’s basic needs and even more difficult to provide the additional care and help with schoolwork. The number of children living with chronic conditions and other special needs has been increasing. Policies that consider and address the needs of both these children and their caregivers are essential. For more information, please see: Heymann SJ. The Widening Gap: Why Working Families Are in Jeopardy and What Can Be Done About It. New York: Basic Books, 2000. Heymann SJ and Earle A. Low-income parents: How do working conditions affect their opportunity to help school-age children at risk? American Educational Research Journal. 2000; 37(2). Heymann SJ. What happens during and after school: Conditions faced by working parents living in poverty and their school-age children. Journal of Children and Poverty. 2000; 6(1):5-20. Back to U.S. Initiatives
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