Children in Foster Care Residential Treatment Centers at High Risk of Neglect, Mistreatment and Abuse
By: By Houston Criminal Attorney John Floyd and Paralegal Billy Sinclair
In a 2002 article for Child Trends, Dr. Richard Werthheimer, Ph.d, said there were more than 556,000 children in foster care in this country—many of whom suffered from serious emotional, behavioral, developmental, and other health problems. That figure represented an increase from 302,000 in 1980. While black children at the time accounted for 15 percent of the nation’s children, they represented 30 percent of those entering foster care and 42 percent of those living in foster care. Hispanic children, who represented 16 of the nation’s children, represented just 18 percent entering and living in foster care.
By 2006, as some states began to reform their foster care systems, the number of children in foster care decreased to 510,000, but the prognosis for future success of those children was as bleak as it was in 2002 – 60 percent of them between ages two months and two years were at still at a high risk for developmental delay and neurological impairment. The number of those “aging out” of foster care was increasing and studies were consistently showing that these “aged out” children had serious adjustment problems transitioning to adulthood: 38 percent had emotional problems, 50 percent used drugs, 48 percent did not have a high school education, and 25 percent had prior involvement with legal system. They were the most likely candidates for homelessness, unemployment, and incarceration.
To combat this persistent trend, states like New York, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, and Ohio began to make concerted efforts to reform their foster care systems, to aggressively push for adoption over institutionalization—and with significant, albeit surprising results. Associated Press reported recently that the number of children in foster care through 2008 had declined to 463,000, thanks in large part to the reforms implemented by these seven states. That represented an 11 percent decrease in the foster care population since 2002. Of these states implementing reforms, Florida led the way by reducing its foster care population from 29,300 in 2006 to 18,700 as of June 2010. AP said Florida accomplished this by “obtaining a statewide waiver from federal funding rules. This allows federal foster care money to be used for a variety of child welfare initiatives rather than being limited to out-of-home care – enabling the state to support troubled families with economic aid, parenting classes and substance abuse so a child doesn’t need to be removed.”
Texas, along with Arizona, Nevada, and Indiana, chose not join the reform trends between 2002 and 2008, although Texas did make some strides in reducing its foster care population. As of 2005, Texas had 32,474 children in foster care, by 2008 the number had minimally decreased only to 31,058, but by 2009 the number had decreased significantly to 27,422. As impressive as the 2009 numbers may appear at first glance, Texas nonetheless saw a 45 percent increase in its foster care population since 2001. Worst yet, as of September 2006, the state had identified 3,409 of its foster care children as having “special needs,” second only to California. And all these figures must be measured against the disturbing fact that in 2009 Texas saw 280 of its children die from child abuse and neglect—a shocking 30 percent increase over the previous year.
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