In a new report issued today, three national experts cite Oklahoma's lack of progress in critical, inter-related foster care areas.
The three experts, called Co-Neutrals, were approved by Oklahoma's Department of Human Services and appointed by the court pursuant to a settlement with plaintiffs of a long-standing federal class action brought on behalf of children in the state's foster care system.
The Co-Neutrals are charged to evaluate and render judgment on the state's performance in strengthening the state's child welfare system.
A press release from DHA Director Ed Lake said, "We are absolutely committed to implementing the Pinnacle Plan in order to improve the way we care for the children in our custody. We have a myriad of efforts underway which are already showing positive results."
The third issued by the experts, is called "Co-Neutral Commentary Three." The experts noted that, although the state had committed significant additional resources to the reform plan, called "The Pinnacle Plan," DHS was experiencing declining and significantly inadequate performance in numerous areas affecting the well-being of children. Among those areas are:
- The third issued by the experts, is called "Co-Neutral Commentary Three." The experts noted that, although the state had committed significant additional resources to the reform plan, called "The Pinnacle Plan," DHS was experiencing declining and significantly inadequate performance in numerous areas affecting the well-being of children. Among those areas are:
- Very high caseloads. The report noted "DHS' caseload-carrying workforce is churning, beset by high turnover and high caseloads. . . Only 27.8 percent of caseworkers had caseloads that complied with the standards set forth in the Pinnacle Plan..."
- The state's failure to develop an adequate supply of foster homes for children. Although the co-neutrals had set benchmarks for the state's performance, as they were required to do under the settlement agreement, DHS only reached 64 percent of that benchmark and approved fewer foster homes than the previous year, although the report also found that the need for additional foster homes remains very high.
- Long delays in the state's response to reports of abuse and neglect. The report noted that the statewide hotline for receiving reports of abuse and neglect is significantly under-staffed, with 33 out of 72 positions unfilled, resulting in increasing delays in conducting investigations and unacceptably long delays, sometimes up to two hours, in even answering phone calls from those seeking to report allegations of abuse or neglect.
- Overuse of shelters for children age 6 and older. Although the state made a commitment to reduce shelter placements generally, the number of children between 6 and 12, and youth over 13, has increased by 11 percent and 21 percent, respectively.
DHS Director Ed Lake responded:
"As we continue to make improvements, it is important to remember that we have seen a 40 percent increase in the past two years in the number of children coming into the foster care system. Abuse and neglect calls to the agency have increased as well as the numbers of children involved in those calls. This demand has stretched DHS' available resources and slowed the implementation of our plans for improvement. Despite these challenges, we are confident we can continue to move forward and make the kind of improvements Oklahoma needs."
A copy of the report (PDF) is here.
The DHS press release detailing their response is here.
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