Q&A
Accountability measures for foster care providers
1:33:23
ยท
3 min
Council Member Stevens asks about accountability measures for foster care providers, particularly in relation to adoption and permanency planning. Commissioner Dannhauser explains the changes in the contract structure and accountability systems.
- New contracts have changed the payment structure from per-day to program size, removing incentives to keep children in care longer
- ACS uses a Provider Agency Measurement System (PAMS) to review agencies' decision-making and case management
- The agency conducts enhanced permanency reviews with providers to identify and address barriers to permanency
- ACS works closely with the court system to ensure appropriate and timely permanency decisions
Althea Stevens
1:33:23
And so even when we think about I know you mentioned earlier that there's, like, report cards for providers.
1:33:28
Yeah.
1:33:29
And can you talk about some of that accountability?
1:33:32
Because one of the things I did hear was, like, sometimes providers don't like to push adoption because they like to keep them in the system longer because they get additional funding.
1:33:41
So could you clear up some of that?
Jess Dannhauser
1:33:43
Yep.
1:33:45
There's a long there was a long standing critique that because foster care agencies were paid per day, that there was sort of a disconnect between timely permanency and the funding mechanism.
1:34:01
And I don't think most providers were keeping kids in care longer for that, but I do think it made it harder for them to invest in the timely permanency.
1:34:10
The new contracts end that.
1:34:12
So they're paid on a program size, and we move budgets based on so in the when I was talking earlier about moving budgets, if a provider's number of children in care is going up but they're not achieving permanency, we're not giving them more resources.
1:34:28
So we're we're looking both at the permanency and that's part of the reason we're seeing some improvements in reunification.
1:34:34
The courts play a huge role here.
1:34:36
Right?
1:34:36
And so
Althea Stevens
1:34:38
Yeah.
1:34:38
And no one ever talks about that.
Jess Dannhauser
1:34:39
Yeah.
1:34:39
And it's and, you know, it's important.
1:34:41
There's due process for parents.
1:34:43
There's making sure that we're getting that decision right that when sometimes when surrender can happen and families can have an open adoption, we can pursue that.
1:34:55
So we are making sure we actually have slightly fewer adoptions this year over last year, but we have more children who are now on the adoption track than we had the year before.
1:35:07
Just to make sure that when it's the right decision that we're moving as quickly as possible.
1:35:12
We're not satisfied where we are on reunification, any of it.
1:35:15
So what we did was under DC Mendez leadership and my office, we're creating a enhanced permanency review with providers.
1:35:24
We're actually selecting cases, going through them, seeing where they're stuck, coming up with solutions there, making sure sometimes it's just that the paperwork get in.
1:35:32
Right?
1:35:33
Did you get the birth certificate?
1:35:34
Did you get this?
1:35:35
And so they were moving those processes as quickly as we possibly can.
1:35:39
We can always, the court is part of it, but we always have to do our our piece of it.
1:35:46
You know, was also mentioning earlier just on the provider side, there's something called PAMs, Provider Agency Measurement System.
Althea Stevens
1:35:52
There you go.
Fernando Canteli de Castro
1:35:52
Here you go.
Jess Dannhauser
1:35:54
Like, created
Althea Stevens
1:35:54
as many years That's why you decommission them.
Jess Dannhauser
1:35:57
But that's like case reviews, and so we're looking at our agencies making decisions that are consistent with the case facts, and moving those along.
1:36:07
You know, I think the decision around termination of parental rights is a really hard one for agencies and for a judge.
1:36:14
And so but there's times where it has to happen, and so we wanna support them in that decision making.
1:36:23
And this is another place where we're using providers to support one another.
1:36:26
There are agencies that have systems, and they're teaching other agencies how to do that.
1:36:31
I think, by and large, our we see in our our reunification numbers that agencies are paying attention here and deeply care about giving children permanency, but we we can do better.