Issued Quarterly

March 2004

OBJECTIVE

In 1999, an estimated 1.3 million children (1.8%) had grandparents as primary caretakers with no parent residing in the home. The reasons for these arrangements vary but most often are related to child abuse and/or neglect. The purpose of this analysis was to explore households with children who are in grandparent care and some of their distinct challenges and characteristics.

METHODOLOGY 

Information was analyzed from the 1999 National Survey of America’s Families that collected information from over 44,000 households on economic, health, and social factors. For this particular policy brief, data was analyzed on “children under age 18 cared for by a grandparent without a parent present in the household”. The actual sample size was 771 children living with grandparents.

RESULTS

The grandparent serving as primary caregiver is older than 50 years for 70% of the children, 62% have a high school diploma/GED or less, and about 48% are married. Caregivers of 54% of the children were considered in fair to poor health, “symptoms suggesting poor mental health” were present for one-third, and the caregivers of nearly one-quarter of the children have “highly aggravated” conditions.  

Of these families, 37% live below the 100% poverty level and 66% are considered low income (below 200% of poverty). Also, 31% reported problems with housing bills or crowding, and 48% had “food insecurity”. It is noted that while the grandparents’ past financial situation may have been better, taking on the care of the grandchildren may have created greater financial burdens, particularly if they depend on fixed incomes.

About 29% of the children living with grandparent caregivers are age five or younger, while 41% are ages 6 to 11, and 30% are ages 12 to 17. Many of these children are suspected to have various behavioral and emotional concerns because of the traumas and separations they may have experienced. This study supports this notion. About 19% have “a limiting condition or are in fair to poor health” and nearly 10% were considered to have significant behavior or emotional problems. Additionally, the grandparents of 26% of the children are minimally engaged in their school activities.

Few of the grandparents receive all of the financial assistance for which they may be eligible, such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), food stamps, or foster care payments. Likewise, only about 20% of those with poor mental health are obtaining needed services. While over 80% of the grandparent caregivers and the children are covered by some health insurance, only 47% of the children receive Medicaid. Also important is that 26% of the children less than age 6 and 38% of children ages 6 through 17 did not have a well-child care visit in the previous year.

CONCLUSIONS

Based on the findings from this study, the authors identify three critical strategies in addressing grandparent caregivers and the children. First is targeting services and approaches to their specific needs including enhancing the adaptability and flexibility of existing health, mental health, welfare, and education programs. Secondly, particular outreach efforts should be made to this population since they frequently are unaware of available services and may be reticent about accepting help. Third, increased efforts and flexible approaches are needed to help this population access services and assistance due to possible health problems, limited mobility, less formal education, and other concerns.