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*please do not mistake my sincerest meaning in everything, I mean no disrespect to any foster/adoptive families at all*
In the state of PA, seems there has been some major budget cuts, In our county esp over 200k a year.
Because of this, they are starting to send kids back home in troves.
The money isn't there now, to keep these kids in foster care, so what is best for the children doesn't seem to matter anymore and they are forced take them back, as many and as fast as they can.
What is this going to do for these kids???? There is no way to save the kids that need saved! It's going to change the "reasons" to remove a child. Extremely severe. Children of sexual/physical abuse are already being transitioned back to parents. So if this is not a reason to keep them in the foster system. What is going to be "bad enough" so to say it, to qualify them to deserve the help they need?
There are a lot of horrible situations that are already, semi "left" go, because there is not the money or rescources to place the kids away from their bio families. Now with even less money to help the kids that need it. What chance to "any" of these kids that need help ever have.
So, now only the INSAINELY EXTREME situations are going to be removed, meaning these kids are going to be the most "severe" cases of all situations.
Just makes me so angry to think that there are families out here waiting years and years in the state and still no children matched. I know of one situation that the children should of been perm removed 13 years ago. 3 adults of the situation suffer a lot of self esteem issues, alot of emotional issues and other things as well. It turned out "ok" in some ways for them. But they really have set backs in life, 2 of them have gotten help in later years, and are adjusting rather well. But they still have major set backs.
This is what social services hopes for.... sadly sometimes doesn't happen. I remember one situation that was on the news no so many years ago. But with budget cuts and so forth, situations like this will be seen more and more often. These folks, their hands are tied. News media can kick and scream all they like for their lack of "doing their jobs". But what are they suppose to do? Visit these families, try to help them as much as they can, and hope they all survive till they can move themselves out of home.
Only the extreme cases of severe problems children will be removed, meaning the only children in the system will be extremely severe "issues" and include all possibilities. Chance of them not will be rather slim I would think.
It takes a very special kind of person to be willing to undertake these children. Sad they are few and far between as well. So either the foster families that are willing will be over ran with children. Or families will be lied to and end up with a lot more then they barganed for. Which again already happens a lot.
With that said.....................
The state is also changing the laws for the adoption and subsidies etc. So, this means. All of the agencys that the SWAN web site gave me, 2 do self referal adoption. The rest only do "foster/adopt" The basic explaination of how it works is this.
You make your choice of what your looking for to adopt as your acceptable children as foster, children who are long term care without chance to be returned to their family. After placement, you choose to adopt. Simple revamp of your Homestudy, and you petition the courts to adopt them.
Which is another reason the State of PA, you may see faces, but not available for adoption, and never are. As they are placed with foster families prior to being "free for adoption" the foster family give their interest to adopt. So they never really become free for adoption. I have also found out, alot of these children never make it to the "lists of avaible" children, as when they are placed with a foster family that intends to addopt when they have placement. They never end up listed. You end up seeing the same little faces for a long time on the web sites etc, because the "special family" I talked about above, hasn't been found.
There are families that have been waiting over 5 years, and are not looking outside of the state for children. They don't like the "foster" idea, they want forever children.
Ok... so this is how I see the cause effect will be...
They are not going to remove children nearly as often as they do, which I think already isn't often enough.
This means less children in the "foster" system. *yay for budgets, GRRRR for the children*
(less money spent, already in action, you would be amazed how many children over the last few weeks were forced back into the abusive families they were taken from)
This will cause less children in the system avaible for adoption.
In return. Only the EXTREMLY serever cases will be removed, ASIDE from the horrible thought of forcing these children to endure and suffer unnecessarily! That if they were taken sooner, they may have a better chance of a "life" in general, instead of a life of deeper rooted with emotional problems and dependant for ever on someone else.
This will cause Only severe case situations avaible for adoption. Which is not something we feel we can do, due to already having bio children. We want to grow our family, and in a postive way. *realistically we know the issues etc we will encounter, don't mistake my meaning* But basically there will be little chance of anything other then a childs placement being a complete explosion to life as any family would know it.
Families waiting 5-10 years..... I don't think I have the patients seeing all the children accross the US that need families. To sit back and wait 5 years as so many already have. Let alone 10.
So now, the kids here will only be "serious" case situations, that take a special kind of person to be willing to undertake, these folks are few and far between and it's sad. PA kids are going to sit there and age out of the system.
It just makes me sick.
Plus, Heaven forbid!! you want to look out of state, from what I have gathered from people who have done this in the last 3-4 months, the costs are through the roof, and PA is a pain in the duff to get the papers and permission to bring these children into the state.
IN RETURN! Being that these kids are the extreme with different possible issues, this would mean people looking to adopt will get to know that reputation of PA. Reputations of different states already flood the community. When someone is about that knows something. PA will get a reputation because of the children available, and again. These children will rarely be placed anywhere.
PA makes it hard to adopt out of state now,
They offer severe situational children as well to the general adoption only community as it is *so only going to get worse sadly*,
The families are going to get fewer and farther between who are willing to undertake the process as it is now, let alone with the changes coming.
SWAN web site admits to not updating their "steeper" qualifcations for any adoption assistance.
What can we do????
I am just not someone to sit back and keep my yap shut, if I can do something and talk to someone... picket someone... What is the Adoption equivalant to a construction Back hoe? that I can chain myself to?
And please, I know It sounds a rant, I really spent 2 hours here trying to make it not. But this is a serious spiral PA is going into.
Lets make a difference before it's to late! How can we make a difference? I don't even know where to start.
Healthy debate?
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