How many times have you heard it? A child “known to the system” dies, and someone says: “See? Because you’re not taking away as many children, and throwing them into foster care, it’s causing children to die!”
We’ve known all along it’s not true. And now, thanks to new research from Washington State, we know something else: Washington State’s limited efforts to stop tearing apart so many families have saved children’s lives – anywhere from six to 22 per year. At the same time, by increasing the proportion of foster children placed with relatives instead of strangers, the state has saved another 10 to 30 children’s lives per year. ...
Read the full column – with a link to the research – in the Washington State Standard
