States taking child welfare funds through the Option would be held accountable for their programs through Child and Family Services Reviews and standard audit requirements. Demonstration counties in Ohio expressed increased support for prevention activities and were more likely than traditionally funded counties to create new or expanded prevention services. The result has been child welfare systems unable to achieve positive outcomes for children. Wide disparities in federal claims might be viewed as positive if States were achieving better outcomes with higher spending. Make sure you have your Social Security number handy, and be prepared to provide other personal details such as your birthdate or current or past addresses. Spending on State Automated Child Welfare Information Systems (SACWIS) has been excluded since these system development costs can vary substantially from year to year in ways unrelated (at least in the short term) to services for children. A State's cost allocation plan is approved by the federal government and distributes expenses that relate to multiple programs and functions. There is little reason to assume this is true at present. ASFA clarified the central importance of safety to child welfare decision making and emphasized to States the need for prompt and continuous efforts to find permanent homes for children. Foster Care. Quantifying such effects is difficult, however. In addition, the restrictiveness of the federal foster care program prevents States from using these funds, by far the largest source of federal funding dedicated to child welfare activities, to implement many important elements in their Program Improvement Plans. Funding sources for preventive and reunification services, primarily the Child Welfare Services Program and the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program funded under title IV-B of the Social Security Act, are quite small in comparison with those dedicated to foster care and adoption. Washington, DC 20201, Michael J. O'Grady, Ph.D.Assistant Secretary, Barbara B. BromanActing Deputy Assistant Secretary for Human Services Policy. The remaining categories, training and demonstrations, were relatively small in most States. The combination of detailed eligibility requirements and complex but narrow definitions of allowable costs within the federal title IV-E foster care program force a focus on procedure rather than outcomes for children and families. B. Foster care agencies employ social workers who work as therapists for children and those who work as case managers. These demonstrations are operating in Indiana, North Carolina, Ohio, and Oregon. As laid out in law and regulations, there are four categories of expenditures for which States may claim federal funds. In contrast to some previous flexible funding proposals, the President's Child Welfare Program Option would be an optional alternative to the current financing system. While the underlying AFDC program was abolished in 1996 in favor of the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program (TANF), income eligibility criteria for title IV-E foster care continues to follow the old AFDC criteria as they existed just before welfare reform was enacted. Available online at: http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ocs/ssbg/index.htm. However, this practice disadvantages States that utilize private colleges and universities for training and limits the training resources available, particularly in rural States where the number of State universities and colleges are limited and at great distances from those people requiring the training. The Administration's proposed Child Welfare Program Option is intended to introduce flexibility while maintaining a focus on outcomes, retaining existing child protections, and providing a financial safety net for states in the form of access to the TANF Contingency Fund during unanticipated and unavoidable crises. Each may have made sense individually, but cumulatively they represent a level of complexity and burden that fails to support the program's basic goals of safety, permanency and child well-being. What should child protection agencies consider when working with children whose parent or primary caregiver is incarcerated? These categories are: With so many different categories of expenses, each matched at a different rate, States must accurately track spending in each of these categories and attribute how much of their efforts in each category are being made on behalf of eligible children. In addition to examining practice in specific cases, the reviews also examine systemic factors such as whether the States' case review system, training, and service array are adequate to meet families' needs. North Carolina found flexible funding contributed to declines in the probability of out-of-home placement following a substantiated child abuse or neglect report. Authorized under title IV-E of the Social Security Act, the program's funding (approximately $5 billion per year) is structured as an uncapped entitlement, so any qualifying State expenditure will be partially reimbursed, or matched, without limit. The Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care (2004). It is unclear, however, that they function reliably as eligibility criteria. There are three types of foster parents in Nebraska: In Children and Youth Services Review, Vol 21, Nos. Foster care services are intended to provide temporary, safe alternative homes for children who have been abused or neglected until such time as they are able to return to their parents' care safely or can be placed in other permanent homes. In particular, HHS budgets from FY2002 through FY2005 each included substantial proposed increases for the Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program, in the amount of $1 billion over five years. The result will be a stronger and more responsive child welfare system that achieves better results for vulnerable children and families. The median net assets of Hague accredited agencies is $314,847. While simply counting the areas of compliance presents a very general, simplified and broad-brush approach to evaluating child welfare system quality, the purpose here is not to analyze system performance in any detailed fashion. It should be noted that while title IV-E eligibility is often discussed as if it represents an entitlement of a particular child to particular benefits or services, it does not. The rewards come in knowing that you made a positive impact on a child's life when they needed it most. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2005). On the other hand, the potentially large sums involved mean that disallowances are met with procedural disputes, appeals, and protests from agency directors, legislators, and governors. Administrative Dollars Claimed per Dollar of Foster Care Maintenance Varies Widely (calculated on the basis of average claims FY2001 through FY2003). The Foster Care Straightjacket: Innovation, Federal Financing and Accountability in State Foster Care Reform. The program initially created in 1961, however, has continued without major revision to its financing structure. It is unlikely that differences this large are the result of actual differences either in the cost of operating a foster care program or reflect actual differential needs among foster children across States. Ugh. Subsequent to the reports initial publication, officials in Ohio realized that the number of Title IV-E foster children reported on its program claims forms, which ASPE relied on for the analysis, had been incorrect. The flexibility afforded by the Option would allow agencies to direct funds to those activities most closely addressing families' needs. Exits refers to information about children exiting foster care during a given timeframe: October 1 through From 1980 through 1996, States could claim reimbursement for a portion of foster care expenditures on behalf of children removed from homes that were eligible for the pre-welfare reform AFDC program, so long as their placements in foster care met several procedural safeguards. In fact, however, knowledgeable observers are hard-pressed to name systems that are functioning well overall. Total federal claims per title IV-E child (averaged across three years), excluding funds for the development of State Automated Child Welfare Information Systems (SACWIS), ranged from $4,155 to $33,091. The automatic adjustment features of the entitlement structure remain a strength, however, only so long as they respond appropriately and equitably to factors that reflect true changes in need and that promote the well-being of the children and families served. Perhaps the biggest on-going cost of pet fostering is food. Eligibility Requirements Foster care benefits are paid when the child meets one of the conditions below: The child is a dependent or ward of the Juvenile Court who is placed and supervised by the Social Services Agency or Probation Department. Choose Your Path. There are also a websites that can help you find county and local agencies, such as AdoptUSKids and Child Welfare Information Gateway. Families must be licensed through one of the ISFC FFAs in order to obtain ISFC training. This figure is for each child you take into your home. However, now that the Child and Family Review process (discussed in some detail in a later section) provides comprehensive assessments of States' child welfare programs, some of what are currently individual eligibility criteria could be addressed more effectively as part of the systemic assessment process. Unless the child can be designated "special needs," which of course, they all can. Strengths and weaknesses of States' child welfare programs are identified through federal monitoring visits called Child and Family Services Reviews. The ability of States to claim title IV-E funds spent on training activities is confounded by statutory and regulatory provisions that are mismatched with how State agencies currently operate their programs. Children in foster care as a result of a voluntary placement agreement are not subject to this requirement. Figure 1. The federal government has, since 1961, shared the cost of foster care services with States. Foster parents with children in foster care in PA ages 6 years old to 12 years old are paid $440 per month, per child. Of this total, $2.1 billion was spent on out-of-home placements, $1.3 billion paid for other services including prevention and treatment, $419 million went to administrative activities, and $98 million funded adoption services. But those States unwilling to accept the risk and the promise of flexibility could choose to continue operating under current program rules. Fewer children will be eligible for title IV-E in the future as income limits for the program remain static while inflation raises both incomes and the poverty line. The daily rate for State funds is the same as the foster care payments, which range from $410-$486 per month per child. A full listing of errors documented in eligibility reviews through Fiscal Year 2003 appears in Table 1. Each child receives a medical card when they enter foster care, and some children are also covered under their family's private insurance. These four States also had higher federal claims per child than did four of seven States which in 2000 paid basic maintenance rates of higher than $500 per month for young children. Many in the child welfare field believe that with more flexibility in funding States would devote additional resources to preventive and reunification services, and that better outcomes for children and families could be achieved. Foster parents provide care for children who cannot safely remain in their own home. The eight states that were in compliance in the fewest areas (1, 2 or 3 of 14) averaged $19,293 in federal funds per title IV-E child, while the 12 highest performing states (in compliance with 8 or 9 of the 14 areas) averaged claims of $19,824 per child. Analyses presented below relate the variations in claiming patterns among States described above to child welfare system performance. Variation among States in the actual foster care rates paid to families caring for children bears only a weak relationship to per-child foster care claims levels (Figure 7). Overall, 47 specific factors are rated and then aggregated to assess whether or not substantial conformity with federal requirements is achieved in seven child outcomes and seven systemic factors (shown in the text box below). U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2004). After several years of development and pilot testing, the Children's Bureau in 2000 began conducting Child and Family Services Reviews (CFSRs) in each State. As an example, four of six States with basic maintenance payments in 2000 of less than $300 per month for a young child had higher than median levels of claims per child. Fosters get a non-taxable subsidy from the government to help care for any kids they take inthis is not money you should be using to pay your rent, go on vacation, or buy a new car. The monthly financial support that ISFC families receive on behalf of an eligible child is $2,706 a month. Children 5-12 $568 per month. From 1961 until 1980, federal foster care funding was part of the federal welfare program, Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). Further, not all States have the financial means or budgetary inclination to invest in the full array of foster care related services for which federal financial participation might be available. Contrary to the welfare determination. VIEW DATA. In such States this drives up administrative costs as a proportion of total title IV-E payments. The base rate is $982.46. Funding sources that may be used for preventive and reunification services represent only 11% of federal child welfare program funds. How we do . Claims for child placement services and administration ranged from $1,190 to $23,724 per title IV-E child, with a median value of $6,840. This paper provides an overview of the program's funding structure and documents several key weaknesses. The structure of the title IV-E program has continued without major revision since it was created in 1961, despite major changes in child welfare practice. Title IV-E has long been criticized because it funds foster care on an unlimited basis without providing for services that would either prevent the child's removal from the home or speed permanency (see, for example, The Pew Commission on Children in Foster Care, 2004 and McDonald, Salyers and Shaver 2004). Fostering the Future: Safety, Permanence and Well-Being for Children in Foster Care. In addition, the match rate for foster care maintenance payments varies from State to State and may be adjusted from year to year. Figure 1 displays the growth in foster care expenditures and the number of children in foster care funded by title IV-E. Foster homes provide support for foster children through either the Department of Health and Human Services or a contracted foster care agency. Foster Care Foster care (also known as out-of-home care) is a temporary service provided by States for children who cannot live with their families. Figure 6. New York should emulate this idea quickly. Foster Care Maintenance Rates Are Weakly Related to Foster Care Claims. That is, for each State the three year average annual federal share in each spending category is divided by the three year average monthly number of title IV-E eligible children in foster care, to give an average, annualized cost per child. It is simply to recognize that most States achieved substantial compliance in fewer than half of areas examined, and that all systems reviewed have been in need of significant improvement. Figure 7. The change is most noticeable on figure 2, in which the per-child claims for Ohio have moved down in the rankings. Consider the story of a foster child named Alex: Alex was taken into foster care at age twelve after his mother's death. Patterns of residential care use among States are similarly unrelated to claiming disparities. The Administration's proposed Child Welfare Program Option is intended to introduce flexibility while maintaining a focus on outcomes, retaining existing child protections, and providing a financial safety net for states in the form of access to the TANF Contingency Fund during unanticipated and unavoidable crises. Below, factors such as the quality of child welfare services are examined in relation to the funding differences across States. There are States with relatively high- and low-federal claims at each level of CFSR performance. 1. Other federal social services programs such as the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) also fund some services for families experiencing or at risk of child welfare involvement, as can Medicaid. All adults in your household must a pass background check and clearance by the New York State Central Register for Child Abuse and Neglect (SCR). Average per-child claims did not differ appreciably between the highest and lowest performing states. However, it seems unlikely that caseworkers make placement decisions on the basis of children's title IV-E eligibility, nor is it likely that judges use title IV-E status as a significant factor in their placement rulings. However, if the child is to remain in care beyond 180 days, a judicial determination is required by that time indicating that continued voluntary placement is in the child's best interests. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Did you know most states do not cover daycare costs for foster kids? Financing and Accountability in State foster Care Maintenance Varies Widely ( calculated on the basis of average claims through... For each child you take into your home federal monitoring visits called and. 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