House Passes Families First Child Welfare Bill, Senate Next Up

Bill Passes House Before House action came to a halt in response to a gun-control sit-down protest, the House of Representatives passed the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456) by a voice vote. The legislation was taken up on Tuesday, June 21 as part of the House suspension calendar which is a House method

Families First Child Welfare Bill Passes Committee, Goal To Move Quickly

The Bill Passes On Wednesday, June 15 the House Ways and Means Committee passed the Family First Prevention Services Act, (HR 5456). The legislation was adopted by a voice vote but only after more than an hour of debate that outlined some of the challenges regarding the proposal and the process. Most members, both Republicans

Families First Child Welfare Bill Released, Goal To Move Quickly

Late Friday afternoon a group of House and Senate Republicans and Democrats released the, Family First Prevention Act along with a summary.  The legislation includes three overarching pieces: a reauthorization of the Title IV-B programs (Promoting Safe and Stable Families, Child Welfare Services), new definitions of foster care including greater oversight and limitations of residential/institutional

Panels Discuss Predictive Analytics In Child Protection and Child Welfare

On Thursday, May 17 the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) focused on, Preventing Harm to Children through Predictive Analytics.  A somewhat formal definition of predictive analytics would define it as a practice of taking data and the information gathered from that data to determine patterns and predict outcomes and trends.  It predicts or forecasts what might

House Subcommittee Discusses Substance Use and Evidence

On Wednesday, May 17 the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Human Resources held their own hearing on the substance-abuse issue and the relationship to child welfare.  It follows last week’s Senate Finance Committee hearing on the use of evidence-based services and its relationship to child welfare. In his opening statement, the Chairman, Congressman Vern

Briefing Highlight Strategies to Recruit Foster Parents

On Wednesday, May 11 the Congressional Coalition on Adoptions Institute (CCAI) along with Fostering Media Connections in conjunction with the Senate Caucus on Foster Youth hosted a Capitol Hill briefing, Recruiting Top-notch Caregivers and Foster Parents as a Pathway to Permanency. Panelists included Daniel Heimpel, Fostering Media Connections, Dr. Sharon McDaniel, A Second Chance, Pennsylvania,

CWLA Members Discuss Substance Use With Hill, States and Programs

After the Tuesday evening dinner with Commissioner Lopez and reporter Christopher Walker, on Wednesday, April 20, CWLA members wrapped-up with a morning session focused on the substance use issue. With Congress continuing its focus on the prescription drug and opioids addiction issue (see following story) and a number of bills introduced in various committees including

Senate Foster Youth Caucus Discusses Substance Abuse

On Tuesday, April 5 the Senate Caucus on Foster Youth held a briefing on Capitol Hill. The briefing is part of a series focused on why children are coming into foster care, this briefing highlighted, “The Impact of Substance Use and Mental Disorders on Child Welfare Involvement.” The panel presentations included comments by Dr Nancy

Senate Committee Hold Hearing on Substance Abuse Issues

On Tuesday, February 23 the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on the prescription drug to heroin addiction issue.  The hearing highlights the continued intense interest within Congress on the issue of heroin and opioids use. With sixteen senators in attendance at one time or another there was a great deal of interest on a

Outcomes Data Highlights Need To Focus Reunification On 12 and Older

The new annual HHS Child Welfare Outcomes report 2010 through 2013 has been released and the summary continues to highlight a greater focus on youth coming into care at 12 or older as an area that could be strengthened.  In short they said: “Moderate correlations were found between the measure of reentry into foster care

Value prop about becoming a member