(NewsNation) — The foster care system in the United States is facing an epidemic.
New analysis shows that children in the system have higher rates of attempted or completed suicide and mental health disorders, three to four times that of the general population. Also, LGBTQ+ people in foster care are at a heightened risk of having suicidal thoughts, and have greater odds of being kicked out, abandoned, or running away as a result of treatment based on their identity, in comparison to those who were never in foster care.
In addition, “I think anybody who cares about kids’ well-being and mental health is concerned about the possibility of reduced Medicaid funding,” said Cynthia Ewell Foster, a child psychologist.
“The most vulnerable children, including those in foster care, are already having trouble getting the services they need.”
In California alone, roughly one-quarter of young adults in foster care have attempted suicide. Colleen Katz, an associate professor of social work at Hunter College, said the findings were shocking.
Katz did a study and used the data from the California You Transitions to Adulthood Study, which surveyed hundreds of youth with questions about all facets of their life. The results came back that roughly 24% had attempted suicide, compared with nearly 2% of U.S. young adults between ages 18 and 25. Meanwhile, 40% of youth in the system had considered suicide.
“These numbers just jumped off the page,” said Katz. “This is something that we urgently need to understand better.’’
Presently, the services for trained child welfare workers or alternative frontline service providers vary by state and locality. Some feel the quality of those services can adversely affect the curbing of suicides.
“The preparation of people coming into the field isn’t what it needs to be,” acknowledged Julie Collins, with the Child Welfare League of America.
Federal help for the foster care system is now in question after President Trump’s administration laid off hundreds of its employees and proposed folding its functions into another agency. Despite that, some states have made progress to address the foster care gaps, with those steps usually requiring legal action to get things moving for suicide prevention efforts.
Officials in Kansas made several changes after the state settled the McIntyre v. Howard lawsuit in 2021. The case was on behalf of foster children who alleged they were subjected to poor access to mental health resources and were often moved. The state also reduced workloads and increased salaries for social workers in its child welfare system.
Texas was another state that has implemented similar changes after facing lawsuits.