Last week the National Runaway Safeline (NRS) released its annual report. The key headline is: “After many years of rapid growth in connections from youth in crisis before a runaway episode, NRS has noticed a shift toward more crisis connections initiated by youth during a runaway episode over the past two years (2016-17). The number
Late Friday, The Administration on Children and Families released its first guidance and preliminary list of services for funding under the Family First Prevention Services Act (PL 115-123)—(FFA). The guidance at ACYF-CB-PI-18-09 gives an overview of some of the initial decisions made by HHS in the interpretation and implementation of the Family First Act. Included
With only 4 days until funding runs out on 25 percent of the federal budget, it is still unclear how the story of the FY 2019 ends. It appears likely there will be a short-term extension this week but that is because of the funeral and ceremonies in honor of former President George H.W. Bush.
Last Sunday, November 25, the CBS news program, 60 Minutes, reported on children separated at the border. What the 60 Minutes segment revealed was what some critics had suspected; they had been separating children from their families much earlier than 2018. The story also documented through interviews with officials from within the government some of
The House of Representative continued to work on their leadership selection for the new Congress. Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) came a step closer to securing the speakership when the new Congress starts on January 3, 2019. She was approved by the Democratic caucus but technically the entire House selects the next Speaker. That requires
Shaquita Ogletree On Tuesday, November 27, the Senate Caucus on Foster Youth held a congressional briefing to discuss the issue of disrupted and dissolved adoptions. The event was a part of a series of Washington National Adoption Month events this year. The discussion focused on estimated ten to twenty-five percent of adoptions disrupted before being
On November 16, the Children’s Bureau issued ACYF-CB-IM-18-05, a memorandum on primary prevention, and “to strongly encourage all child welfare agencies and Children’s Bureau (CB) grantees to work together with the courts and other appropriate public and private agencies and partners to plan, implement and maintain integrated primary prevention networks and approaches to strengthen families
Voice for Adoption (VFA), the North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC) and the Center on American Progress have released a new study, Welcoming All Families that analyses discrimination against LGBTQ youth in foster care and discrimination against the recruitment of foster and adoptive parents. The report finds that although same-sex parents are not banned
Last week the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) in HHS released a new study on opioid treatment and child welfare. The report, Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in the Child Welfare Context: Challenges and Opportunities, outlines some of the challenges in providing treatment to families involved with child welfare.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued its annual report on Mortality in the United States and found more bad news. The United States continues to see a decline in life expectancy, something that is unusual for a developed country to experience over several years. The mortality numbers continue to show another increase
