Tag Archives: Maine

A System in Disarray: The Child Welfare System in Nebraska

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Nebraska seems fine at putting their children at risk. Over ten years ago the state decided to privatize their child welfare services, but – surprise, surprise – the entire system fell apart. It took YEARS to fix what happened while the double-pronged approach also had them cleaning up their image in the public eye. As with children in the system, stability is vital to a successful, persistent, and constantly replenished system. But the goodwill they earned at cleaning up their mess didn’t seem to mean much to the State because now they’re shaking things up again to the detriment to the people they serve. We’re Robert and Kathey Raskin, and we’re here to tell you all about what we’ve learned.

If It Isn’t Broke, Don’t Fix It

The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has selected a new, out-of-state private child welfare provider for Douglas and Sarpy Counties. The current provider, PromiseShip, had high scores for service quality and management. Our research has found that HHS awarded the contract to St. Francis Ministries.

St. Francis’ history in Kansas has drawn ire from Nebraska lawmakers and child advocates. These concerned citizens cite concerns about foster placement stability, case manager workloads, and costs. They bid $196 million over five years, far lower than PromiseShip’s proposal of $341 million. That’s a big red flag to us, because you get what you pay for. Caveat emptor: one of the oldest clichés in the book, yet it always seems to be viable to the situation at hand.

 

The Debate

A spokeswoman for Saint Francis claims the organization “will meet all expectations outlined in our Nebraska contract and conform to all applicable state regulations and laws.”

Former CEO of the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services Kerry Winterer points out that “changing contractors at this time based only on cost and ignoring PromiseShip’s experience and success in providing these services, not to mention its scoring better on the substantive criteria, is a mistake and puts our children at risk.”

The state has an enormous responsibility to get this right. Child welfare service is complicated, as you know from the reporting that we’ve done over the years. It demands a high level of competence. The potential for corruption is high within the industry and the children lose.

KMTV gives you a rundown on the changes here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzj8bJjo_28

Is This the Right Path? West Virginia to Outsource their Foster Care System for Three Years

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Time for another update on a previously reported location: West Virginia. We’re Robert and Kathey Raskin, and we don’t feel that outsourcing the current system is the right way to go. You can claim to have oversight when you outsource something. But the fact is, you’re not. Not only that you’re taking away jobs from hard-working Americans. It’s because you don’t have the foresight to take a proactive stance, drain the swamp, and protect Americans from 8 weeks to 80 years.

Who Are We Helping Here?

The state Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) recently reported that they’re putting up for bid a three-and-a-half-year contract, beginning January 1, 2020. The estimated value will be nearly $200 million per year. Of course, as with most things, it’s subject to change if additional services need to be integrated into the program. Services provided by NECCO are independent of this contract. DHHR would continue to provide services to the Bureau for Children and Families.

Making Good on Threats

According to the Associated Press, the move is billed to help streamline care for children in state custody and adoptive families. The reason why it’s moving over to a managed care organization is because local lawmakers passed a bill requiring DHHR to transfer children in foster care to an MCO by January 2020. But they only moved forward with this because the Department of Justice threatened to sue the state over possible violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act within its foster system.

You’re reading this right. They only decided to pursue an MCO because they were being threatened with a lawsuit. Not once did it occur to them to take control and do something about it before it even got to that point. This lethargic approach is why we’re adamant that the problem is within the department, and the department should handle it. Bringing an outside source in is only a Band-Aid. Unless we work to clear out the disease, it’ll come back time and again.

Hear more about the West Virginia Senate Select Committee on Children and Poverty from Executive Director of the West Virginia Center on Budget and Policy Ted Boettner:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AWVXY1K-THA

Indiana Foster Kids Fight Back: A Pending Class-Action Lawsuit Was Filed Against Indiana Department of Child Services, Governor Holcomb

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We’re Robert and Kathey Raskin, and we’re delighted to learn that the children in Indiana’s child welfare system are fighting back against the apathy that they’re in. We’re proud of these patriots standing up and claiming what’s theirs: a fair and just examination of the fouled-up system that they’re in here. Their allegations stem from their opinion that Indiana is failing in its duty to protect more than 22,000 children in the state’ child welfare system.

We’ve written about the state of affairs that makes up the welfare system for children in Indiana in the past. We always try and follow up on previously reported locations to provide timely updates on what’s happening out there. We’re not a one and done blog. We stay on top of everything that concerns what we see as the lethargy and corruption that plagues the system worldwide. The entirety of the child welfare system deserves a closer look. We reveal what we can here.

Failure to Protect the Kids

The lawsuit alleges that the nine children – unnamed for their privacy – felt that the state put them in inappropriate, unstable, or overly restrictive settings. They represent a class of 22,000 children who are in DCS custody, as well as an ADA subclass of thousands of children with disabilities who are wards. They didn’t receive the necessary support services and medical care. Their medical care, mental health, and physical needs are hampered by irregular DCS assessments and the lack of available resources.

Furthermore, they weren’t given meaningful case management resulting in delayed or no services and little oversight of a child. All these factors – among many others – allowed children to languish in foster care for years. Eventually, they were reunified with their primary caretakers, adopted, or aged out of the system.

Statistics Mean Nothing Without Tangible Results

The Child Welfare Consulting Group criticized the agency’s disorganization in a 2018 audit. The agency claimed to have made changes – too little, too late, we say – including a 17 percent decrease in total cases since January 2018 and a 14 percent decrease in out-of-home placements. They claim staff turnover is down 18 percent, and attorney caseloads are lessened as well. They added 25 positions since January 2019.

But the kids are smart. Their lawsuit points this out by alleging DCS appears to focus more on improving statistics. They still failed to properly investigate allegations, or they would send children home too quickly and without necessary services and aftercare. They demand that Indiana transform its foster care system, including acquiring properly trained caseworkers to meet the needs of foster children.

Here’s more information about the lawsuit below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVao03k2dmM

When Will People Stand Up for the Kids in Arizona?

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There’s a foster bed shortage in Arizona. We’re Robert and Kathey Raskin and we want to tell you more about this alarming development. There aren’t enough cribs for infants either. There are over 21 private agencies operating in central Arizona. While it’s true that foster beds are always in demand, the shortage is more prominent because they’re simply unable to find foster families. There are checks and balances in place. For example, Child Crisis Arizona is one shelter in Mesa that handles the overflow of intakes when the Department of Child Safety can’t locate a foster bed. Yet, there was no room in their facilities to handle the multitude of children coming through the system. Strangely enough, of 200 foster homes that agency gives licenses to, none of them had open beds.

Drop in Applications

Something’s wrong statewide when there’s a significant drop in new foster-home applications. DCS has been offering $200 gift cards to current foster parents who send referrals their way. All they must do is complete foster-care training and get their license. A private agency named HRT offers a $75 bounty for successful referrals. It’s sad that you have to incentivize the life of a child to get people interested.

There are more than 1,200 foster homes with on hold licenses, meaning they’re unable to continue being foster locations. This is offered when families want to take a break, go on an extended vacation, or dealing with other extenuating circumstances that prevent them from being fully committed to their duties. While understandable, DCS should stay aggressive and on top of their game, knowing that lulls in availability are possible. We implore the State of Arizona to take a deeper look at their current system.

Streamline the Process

It’s been said that it typically takes four to six months for prospective foster parents to complete the needed training, background checks, and home inspections. So why wouldn’t they have done their research and realized that the DCS preference for moving older children out of group homes and into foster placements is more than likely what caused the kink in the pipeline? They should have had the foresight to know that when you focus on one area, another becomes lax. We should always account for bumps in the road when it comes to our children. Arizona has let them down.

Arizona is making plans to fix the system but let’s see how far they get. Stop DHR is on the lookout for improvement and once we see results, we’ll tell you more.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKjfZAk5SFo

When Will It Stop: More Deaths in Monitored Homes

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Maine has become a hotbed for children killed in homes in the past 12 years. These were cases where child welfare officials were previously made aware of where children were subjected to abuse or neglect, sometimes for years. Not only that, but an additional 34 deaths were ruled accidental or of natural causes in the same type of environment. The State of Maine is doing a great disservice to their citizens by not following up on these sorts of issues. We’re Robert and Kathey Raskin, and we’re here to shed light on this gross miscarriage of justice against children in this state.

More About the Fallout

Dr. Stephen Meister claims that “changing behavior and identifying the families that have multiple risk factors, which dramatically increases the likelihood of death, accidental or otherwise. So, death may not be the result of abuse, but can be linked to an increased number of hazards.” He is an Augusta pediatrician and member of the state’s Child Death and Serious Injury Review Panel. In the latest report by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children & Families, Maine did not submit data about the deaths of children. This report was from 2017 and would’ve included child fatalities and the rate of fatality per 100,000 children. But nobody knows what’s happening up there.

We Demand Answers

As is the case with most child welfare agencies in America, the Office of Child and Family Services is rotten. There’s high staff turnover at the caseworker level. Workers are responsible for too many cases, far beyond what anyone can manage in a regular office position. There are zero incentives to stay where they’re at which is sad about how things are there.

Furthermore, they’re bogged down by a paperwork system that’s entirely burdensome and needs desperate modernization. The department can’t seem to hang onto administrators either, which has led to a leadership vacuum. It’s a thankless career and an overburdened system that helps no one. We call upon the State of Maine to stand up and do something about it.

News Center Maine tells us that the State is making headway on upgrading their ancient system below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjQUNHfELX0