• Many types of abuse and neglect occur nationwide.children image by Renata Osinska from Fotolia.com
  
  Child abuse and neglect laws in Pennsylvania are in place to protect children and provide a safe haven for individuals to report child abuse and neglect. Child neglect comes in several forms, according to Pennsylvania law, including neglect that results from a direct refusal to care for a child's physical and emotional well-being, allowing a child to engage in sexual activities, including prostitution and child pornography, and medical neglect--the refusal to seek medical treatment for a sick or injured child. Pennsylvania child protective services protects the identities and provides immunity to reporters of child abuse and neglect.
  
  

Physical Neglect

• Pennsylvania law considers any failure to provide for the emotional and physical safety of a child to be child abuse and neglect. Failure to provide a child with housing, food and clothing because of inadequate parenting constitutes child neglect. However, being unable to provide a child with these necessities because of low income does not constitute child abuse or neglect. The neglect occurs because of a fundamental disregard for the child's needs and failure to provide these necessities because of parental unfitness, often in the form of alcohol or drug abuse. Failing to protect a child from physical harm or abuse by a third party and persistent lack of supervision also constitutes child neglect in Pennsylvania.
  
  

Medical Neglect

• Failing to provide a child with adequate medical care constitutes child neglect in the state of Pennsylvania. Adequate medical care is defined as seeking treatment for illness, disease or bodily injury. Medical child neglect also occurs when a parent's failure to seek treatment for their child results in permanent injury or a significant impediment in a child's physical and emotional development. The state of Pennsylvania, however, does not consider the refusal to seek medical treatment on the grounds of religious belief to be child neglect or abuse.
  
  

Sexual Abuse and Exploitation

• Failure to protect a child from sexual abuse or exploitation constitutes child abuse and neglect in the state of Pennsylvania. Sexual abuse includes molestation, rape and exposure to sexually explicit materials. Sexual exploitation includes allowing a child to engage in prostitution or to be used in the marketing of child pornography, including photographs, videos or materials marketed on the Internet. Allowing a child to be solicited for sexual acts, whether for financial gain or not, is considered to be sexual exploitation and falls under the category of child neglect and abuse.
  
  

Reporting Child Neglect and Abuse

• Child protective services in Pennsylvania works under the presumption of good faith and to protect the identity of people who report instances of child abuse and neglect; these individuals, including doctors and school officials, cannot be brought up on criminal or civil charges in conjunction with a child abuse and neglect case. Failure to report instances of abuse and neglect, however, may result in criminal or civil charges and fines. Physicians in Pennsylvania have the ability to take a child into protective custody if she believes that the child is the victim of child abuse or neglect.