40,000 US kids have lost a parent to COVID-19 in the last year, and experts say they need government-funded counseling

• In every 13 people who died of COVID-19 in the past year, one was a parent.
• The number of kids who lost a parent to the disease last year was 13 times higher than the rate of kids who lost a parent to 9/11.
• Researchers say the government should provide support and counseling for these kids.

Around 40,000 US children have lost a parent to COVID-19 in the past year, according to new data.

Researchers at Penn State University used family networks to model how many children aged 17 and under lost a parent to the disease caused by the novel coronavirus between February 2020 and February 2021.

One in every 13 COVID-19 deaths was a parent, according to the model used. That means between 37,300 and 43,000 children lost a parent. Around 75% of the kids were adolescents, and the rest were elementary school-aged.

Throughout the pandemic, Black people have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19, and this study reflects the same trend. The researchers found that around 20% of the kids who lost a parent were Black, even though Black children make up 14% of the population.

While the majority of COVID-19 deaths have affected those 65 or older, 15% of people who died were in their 50s and early 60s and 3% were in their 40s, according to Ashton Verdery, study author and associate professor of sociology, demography, and social data analytics at Penn State.

"In these younger age groups, substantial numbers of people have children, for whom the loss of a parent is a potentially devastating challenge," Verdery said in a statement.

Losing a parent to COVID-19 may lead to future mental health problems

While adults are far more likely to be hospitalized from COVID-19, researchers are documenting a rise in anxiety and depression among America's 74 million children.

The researchers said untreated trauma from losing a parent may lead to future mental and economic problems, especially if the children are already suffering from pandemic-related anxiety.

Researchers say the government should provide counseling for kids, as was done after 9/11

According to the report, the number of children who lost a parent to COVID-19 in 2020 was 13 times higher than the rate of kids who lost a parent to 9/11.

Children who lost a parent to the 9/11 attacks were provided support from the federal government. The authors of the study say similar support should be extended to bereaved kids during the pandemic, especially while schools and social spaces are closing, cutting off "normal" support systems.

Verdery said that every child who loses a parent needs to be connected to their entitled benefits, like social security child survivor benefits. "Research shows only about half of eligible children are connected to these programs in normal circumstances, but that those who do fare much better," Verdery said.

Eligibility to receive these benefits should be expanded, too, and these kids should be provided with counseling, according to Verdery.