Paternity Establishment and In-Hospital Paternity

How This Program Helps

Paternity must be set before child support can begin. Families can do this through one of the Child Support's 20 District offices, by court order or through the in-hospital Paternity Establishment Project (PEP).

Under the hospital-based Paternity Establishment Project, hospital staff are required to give unmarried couples the opportunity to voluntarily acknowledge the paternity of their child, shortly after the child's birth. This project is distinct from paternities established in child support cases, and applies statewide to all unmarried parents with a hospital birth.

The in-hospital option gives parents a simple, voluntary way to confirm paternity early, helping create a clear path for support and stability.

Types of Cases

Operating under Title IV-D of the Social Security Act, Child Support handles two types of cases based on a family’s situation:

• Families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funding
• Families not receiving TANF (Non-TANF)

Data Notes

• TANF: cases receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funding 
• Non-TANF: cases not receiving TANF funding
• In-Hospital: Most in-hospital cases are not part of a child support case.

Data Sources

Automated Program to Enforce Child Support (APECS)