Child and Family Well-Being – COVID-19 Pandemic

As New York City continues to face unprecedented challenges with the
continued spread of COVID-19, the health and well-being of all New
Yorkers remain forefront in our minds. The outbreak of the novel
coronavirus (COVID-19) is a global public health crisis that presents
risks and consequences for all New Yorkers. But this crisis is not
solely a threat to individual health – its ramifications will be felt by
children, families, communities, and the entire city for months and
years to come.

While many of us feel helpless right now, we must take a closer look at
what we can do to ensure New York City has the tools in place to respond
to increased and emerging needs so that children, families and
communities don’t just survive but recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the coming weeks, CCC will examine data from our online database,
data.cccnewyork.org, to help us identify these policy opportunities.

Critically we know that while the COVID-19 virus doesn’t discriminate,
it is disproportionately impacting communities of color and
immigrant-led households. This crisis has revealed in stark terms the
poverty, overcrowded housing, poor health, and lack of health insurance
coverage experienced in many communities, placing individuals and
families at greater risk. It has made clear that social distancing and
remote work are privileges largely not afforded to low income New
Yorkers and these New Yorkers also struggle to purchase a week’s worth
of food. At a time when people are being asked to not leave their homes,
children and families lack internet access, impeding remote learning and
preventing access to needed services and supports as well as basic
health and safety information. In short, the risks that existed before
the crisis are exacerbated now, jeopardizing health, housing, education,
and safety; triggering student learning loss, declining mental health,
increased hunger and homelessness, as well as potential child welfare
involvement and domestic violence, among others.

Through short briefs, blogs, and fact sheets we hope to speak to
opportunities to:

• Bridge the Digital Divide
• Prevent Homelessness
• Combat Food Insecurity
• Get New Yorkers Back to Work
• Address Trauma
• Improve Education Outcomes

We hope you find the information shared through this effort helpful and
that you join us in thinking through what data must be examined and
policy opportunities explored. We are hopeful that this work might
inform advocacy across coalitions, our engagement of the media, as well
as federal stimulus, state and city budget and legislative priorities.
Our ultimate goal is to better ensure that all children and families are
healthy, housed, educated and safe.

Please stay tuned to updates from CCC on e-mail and social media. In the
meantime, we hope our existing data resources will be helpful to you in
understanding child and family well-being across New York City:

• For recent media coverage on child and family well-being visit the
  Pressroom on
  CCC’s website.
• Keeping Track of New York City’s Children: 2020
  Download CCC’s latest data book illustrating welcomed and worrisome
  trends facing NYC’s children and families
• Explore the most comprehensive database on child and family well-being
  at the municipal level at
  data.cccnewyork.org.
• New on CCC’s Blog: Students in Temporary Housing & Distance
  Learning
  – A Unique Challenge of the City’s COVID-19 Response

Thank you for your continued partnership and support. Be safe and
well.