Governor Mike Kehoe announced Thursday that Missouri will participate in the Trump administration's "A Home for Every Child" initiative. The program was launched by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Administration for Children and Families or ACF.
Late last year, ACF offered states a choice to either remain on the traditional Program Improvement Plan or PIP under the Child and Family Services Reviews or opt into a new PIP connected to the "A Home for Every Child" initiative. Missouri is the second state to opt into the new plan – Oklahoma was the first.
Governor Kehoe said in a press release that by joining the initiative "Missouri is strengthening our child welfare system, supporting foster families and reaffirming our commitment to protecting our most vulnerable children."
But the initiative has been criticized by the Child Welfare Monitor, which called it "highly problematic."
It said the initiative overlooks the need for larger homes for sibling groups and residential treatment for some kids.
The initiative has set a goal of achieving a foster home-to-child ratio greater than 1:1 in every state. But the Child Welfare Monitor is concerned that could lead to taking fewer kids into foster care by redefining safety, which would make it harder to deem a child unsafe. That could leave some kids in unsafe conditions, it said. And it fears the number of foster homes could be maximized "regardless of quality, capacity or the need for residential treatment."
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