“It’s going to take more time now,” Darlene said. “I’m frustrated. I’m sad. He was living with me. I was always part of his life until that incident happened three years ago.”
Nearly every month for the last several years, Darlene has made a 500-mile trek from her home in the Bronx to visit her four-year-old grandson, Nathaniel, who lives in Detroit.
There are currently 437,000 children in the foster care system with more than 69,000 of those living in institutions, group homes and other placements instead of with a family member, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. There are no national statistics on pending reunification cases, but in 2018, the agency tallied 139,004 children who left foster care and were reunited with their families or placed with a relative.
Judges and child welfare agencies, Sankaran said, should take the difficulties caused by the pandemic into account when making placement decisions. Mehring adds that with the loss of jobs across the country, there will inevitably be parents currently with pending reunification cases who now don’t have the means to visit their children or continue a costly legal battle.
Elizabeth Hope, a foster parent for SOS Children’s Villages Illinois, currently has six children in her care, from ages two to thirteen.
México Últimas Noticias, México Titulares
Similar News:También puedes leer noticias similares a ésta que hemos recopilado de otras fuentes de noticias.
Delays, despair as coronavirus pandemic halts family reunification hearings for foster childrenThe coronavirus outbreak has put family reunification hearings across the country on hold as courts are either closed or operating on a limited basis, threatening to create a backlog of custody cases.
Leer más »
Neighborhood 'Bear Hunts' Are Here To Occupy Kids While Social DistancingCommunities are embracing this family-friendly (and appropriately contact-free) activity amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Leer más »
Coronavirus Court Closures Prevent Child Adoptions, Hurt Foster FamiliesThe coronavirus pandemic's not just forcing people to stay home, it's also keeping children from finding their forever homes.
Leer más »
Kids in foster care? Coronavirus prompts courts to halt family visits, dealing harsh blow.It’s a devastating blow for nursing mothers and parents of very young or developmentally delayed children whose communication ability is limited already.
Leer más »
Andrew Cuomo’s Daily Press Briefing Is the Most Important Show on TVDay by day, Andrew Cuomo is making an incomprehensible disaster a little easier to understand. chaneyj writes
Leer más »
Tinsley Mortimer Gives Wedding Update Amid CoronavirusWill Tinsley Mortimer Invite Any of Her Real Housewives Co-Stars to Her Wedding?
Leer más »