Two separate audits of the Kansas Foster Care System say the state needs to do more to help foster children. The audits found that foster kids are being moved around too much, struggle to get mental health care and that more kids are sleeping in offices this year. One report is part of a lawsuit settlement that said the state needs to meet certain goals to avoid future court action. So far, the state is not doing that.
Rachel Marsh is the CEO of the Children’s Alliance of Kansas. She says these issues have plagued the foster care system for years, saying there are steps that Kansas is taking today that they’ve been working on improving, but still have a long ways to go. Marsh is especially concerned about poor tracking of data. That makes it harder to truly measure if programs are working.
