SEATTLE (AP) — Washington is struggling to meet all the requirements of a landmark lawsuit intended to improve foster-care services for children.
But even as lawmakers and the state Department of Social and Health Services seek fixes for what’s known as the Braam lawsuit settlement, the state’s foster-care system is experiencing a big reduction in foster homes.
Filed in 1998, the Braam lawsuit is named for plaintiff Jessica Braam, who moved through 34 foster-care placements by the time the complaint was filed. The state has met most of the benchmarks to improve its foster-care system that came from a 2004 settlement of the lawsuit.
But seven were not met as of September, and DSHS has recently slid backward on three of those: the average caseload being handled by social workers, and the goals of caregiver training and support provided to foster parents.
Local Angle: Foster families
In the Vancouver area, there are 320 foster families with 697 beds, which represents about 6 percent of the state’s supply of foster families. The more beds there are, the better for the needs of the child being placed into short or long-term foster care, according to Mindy Chambers, spokeswoman for the Department of Social and Health Services’ Vancouver office.
Those interested in learning more about becoming a foster parent, should visit www.dshs.wa.gov/CA/fos/becoming-a-foster-parent and www.fosteringtogether.org or call 888-KIDS-414.
— Patty Hastings
At the same time, the number of licensed foster-care homes in Washington stood at 4,946 in October, down 17 percent from 5,965 in 2007, according to state data.
The shortage means the state doesn’t always have the best home placement for a child, said Jennifer Strus, assistant secretary for the Children’s Administration at DSHS.
Mike Canfield, executive director for the Foster Parents Association of Washington State, said he worries that some of the decline comes from long-term foster parents that the state relies upon.
“When we lose those, that’s a sign that the system’s distressed,” he said.
The stakes involved in whether Washington has a well-functioning foster-care system are high, according to Patrick Dowd, director of the state’s Office of the Family and Children’s Ombuds.
Poorly served foster children can struggle in school, or can suffer from or develop mental-health or substance issues, and possibly wind up being incarcerated later in life, he said.
The Braam settlement required that 90 percent of social workers carry a caseload of no more than 18 children. But only 82 percent of social workers met that average in the first half of 2015 — down from 86 percent in the previous six months.
Strus said the agency is having trouble recruiting and keeping social workers. When a social worker leaves, that worker’s caseload is distributed among others, raising the average, she said.
It’s not clear why the number of licensed foster homes in Washington has trended downward.
Some of the decline could be attributed to foster families’ adopting the children in their care, or children finding a home with relatives.
