When the latest AFCARS data was released a few weeks ago, it allowed a unique opportunity to compare the last decade. The 2009 AFCARS report indicated that there were 423,773 children in foster care on the last day of the federal fiscal year. That is almost identical to the number for 2019: 423,997. An identical number for the decade. But
When CWLA joined hundreds of organizations in defense of the Affordable Care Act in 2017 and 2018, we explained to Congress, and our members, why the ACA is vital to any efforts to reduce the number of children coming into foster care and in preventing instances of child neglect. In a June 2017 letter to
The National Foster Care Youth and Alumni Policy Council released a brief this month titled “A Historic Opportunity to Reform the Child Welfare System: Youth & Alumni Priorities on Special Populations.” This brief was meant to discuss provisions in the Family First Prevention Services Act, Family First Act, for youth considered to be a part of the
Earlier this week, First Focus on Children co-hosted a webinar with the Children’s Defense Fund, and the Child Poverty Action Group on the topic of the 2019 Census Data released this month on child poverty. The collection and publication of this data are incredibly useful because they capture families’ socio-economic realities with children. This acts
CWLA joined dozens of children’s groups and other advocates in filing an amicus brief in support of the City of Philadelphia in upholding their non-discrimination requirements in child placements. The case will be heard at the Supreme Court the day after the election. In 2018 a report in the Philadelphia Inquirer had determined that some
On Tuesday, September 15, the U.S. Census Bureau released new data on income and poverty in the United States for 2019. According to the data, the median household income shows the highest on record number and declines in the official poverty rate. According to the data released, the U.S. poverty rate declined to 10.5 percent in 2019
The U.S. Census Bureau released their annual data on health insurance coverage in the U.S., indicating that 26.1 million (8%) Americans did not have health insurance at any point in 2019. Although 92 percent of Americans were insured for all or part of 2019, the majority (68%) had private insurance, and 34.1 percent had public insurance. Employer-based
On Wednesday, September 16, 2020, several publications printed reports of immigrant detainee abuse at Homeland Security facilities including the possibility of unapproved hysterectomies on women being held at the facility. The reports and recent court actions highlight the difficulty many immigrant families are facing during the pandemic. Immigrants with proper documentation and status are being
A new Frontline documentary, Growing Up Poor in America, depicts three children and their families’ stories as they navigate poverty during the coronavirus pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic has not been friendly to American families who have struggled in the past to make ends meet. With schools shutting down across the nation, parents had to be
On Monday, September 14, 2020, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled by a 2-1 margin in favor of the Trump Administration to strip legal immigration status from some 400,000 people, rendering them deportable if they do not voluntarily leave the country. The ruling deals specifically with Temporary Protected Status
