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"To assume one piece of legislation will be a cure-all for these kids would be an overstatement given the weight of their circumstances...But the truth is, thousands in my own state have lost loving parents to opiate addiction, and I fear if we do not do something, we’ll lose thousands in the next generation, too." - Congressman Todd Young

As child-welfare agencies across the country are overwhelmed due to increased opiate abuse, Congressman Todd Young of Indiana and Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa introduced the Modernizing the Interstate Placement of Children in Foster Care Act to address this nationwide crisis.  With record levels of children languishing in foster care, it is exceedingly difficult for caseworkers to find local placements.

As communities, non-profits, and policymakers search for solutions to address the harrowing drug epidemic, it is important not to lose sight of the children whose lives have been fundamentally and forever altered by the crisis. Young met with many devoted caseworkers in Southern Indiana, and a deeply caring individual on his staff shared her own experiences as a foster parent. As the father of four young children, he said he found it difficult to communicate the heartbreak felt for so many children who still need a permanent home after enduring the unimaginable.

The following except from an April 2015 Indianpolis Star editorial helps illustrate the severity of the crisis: The children ultimately made the call, and paramedics noted that upon their arrival the parents "were turning blue and their bodies were cold." They survived and later admitted to snorting heroin that morning, as their children slept nearby. For the children, this was a school day. That's what some of our children endure. That is the type of baggage so many of them carry with them each day. 

Tragedy compounded by extended stints in various foster arrangements has proven detrimental to a child’s future. For children who are caught up in a system struggling to meet community needs, Young believes we should do everything possible to get them immediately placed in the setting that’s best for them, regardless of state boundary lines.

Young and Grassley seek to reduce the amount of time it currently takes to place children with adoptive relatives, families or in long-term placements across state lines by incentivizing more state to implement the National Electronic Interstate Compact Enterprise, or NEICE system. Six pilot states that utilized NEICE demonstrated substantial reductions in the time it took to place these children in a long-term placement or with an adoptive family across boundary lines. On average, use of NEICE reduced wait times by 30% and participating states anticipated savings of $1.6 million per year in reduced copying, mailing, and administrative costs. 

To view the Modernizing the Interstate Placement of Children press release, click here. 

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