Shock Report: More Than One Hundred Thousand Kids Lost in Foster Care 2018-2020
The Office of Inspector General for Health and Human Services issued a report which found that there were 110,446 "missing children episodes" in foster care from July 1, 2018, through December 31, 202
The Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently released a report on the state of foster care.
The shocking number of children who escape foster care suggests children are better off in the care of even the worst birth parents.
The report examined the period from July 1, 2018 through December 31, 2020.
There were 110,446 missing children episodes during our audit period. State agencies' data showed the following: the percentages of missing children by State ranged from 0 to 7 percent; the average number of days that the children were missing ranged from 7 to 96 days; the number of children who were still missing as of December 31, 2020, was 6,619; the average number of times children went missing ranged from 1 to 7 times; and the majority (65 percent) of missing children were between 15 and 17 years old. The data also showed that among the missing children, 51 percent were females, 48 percent were males, and 1 percent were reported without gender data, or reported as transgender or undecided.
With respect to our second objective, all 50 State agencies said that they had implemented policies and procedures regarding measures to report and locate missing children. Some State agencies reported enhanced procedures when a high-risk child went missing, or created special units or had specifically designated staff to help locate missing children.
With respect to our third objective, we identified several barriers and other deficiencies in State agencies' policies and procedures. These barriers included limitations in State agencies' data systems, lack of oversight to ensure timeliness when reporting missing children, and issues involving the collaboration and exchange of information with Federal agencies and law enforcement.
With respect to our fourth objective, the most frequently identified challenges were: locating children who repeatedly go missing from foster care; obtaining cooperation from missing children's families and friends and from law enforcement; finding correct placements for children to prevent them from running away; and a lack of awareness of the support and technical assistance that the Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families (ACF) provides.
On any given day, there are anywhere between 400,000-500,000 children in foster care.
When I interviewed Malinda Sherwyn, she talked about the enormous number of children who go missing in foster care in her state of Arizona.
I also previously covered the eyebrow raising number of cases of foster parents charged and/or convicted of child sexual abuse crimes.
Yet, parents all over the country complain their children are taken for little or no reason.
The problem is so bad in Arizona that Martin Lynch- who I interviewed- and others want to bring jury trials before children are removed from their parent's homes.
As the late Nancy Schaefer first pointed out over a decade ago, this is happening because federal funds have set up a system where it’s profitable to take children and put them into foster care: putting them into a system where they desperately run and are often placed with predators.