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This morning, I’d like to talk to you about the steps that Congress
can take to help the nation better achieve these goals:
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foster care, shorten lengths of stay, and increase exits to a
safe and permanent home.
When national data are examined, it is clear that the steady and
consistent drop in the number of entries into foster care during the
past few years accounts for much of the reduction we’re seeing. I
believe that some of this good news is, in part, due to an
increasing number of agencies working successfully with families
upstream, identifying other safe alternatives for children besides
foster care, and emphasizing prevention as an integral part of
child welfare practice.
The fact that Title IV-E funding cannot be used for prevention or
post-reunification services has created a significant challenge to
achieving better safety outcomes and finding permanent homes
for children.
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• How do we hold jurisdictions accountable for the results that
we want for our children?
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Title IV-E waivers have played a key role in improving outcomes
in Florida and California. These jurisdictions have developed
innovative reform strategies in combination with strong visionary
leadership, the use of child outcome data to guide sound decision
making, and an emphasis on parental involvement and family
connections. Title IV-E waivers have permitted these jurisdictions
to fundamentally alter the character of their service delivery
systems and build on reform efforts previously underway. Foster
care remains an important part of these agencies’ service
programs, but it is no longer considered to be the only solution or
main service available to vulnerable children and families.
I was asked the question once, what does it take for states to be
waiver ready?
These results that we see today have been building over the past
five plus years, but they have been promising enough for us to
know that we must keep moving forward.
Thank you again for the opportunity to share these remarks with
you, and, above all, thank you for your commitment to the well-
being of America’s children and their families.
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