PA Auditor General releases report on ‘broken’ child welfare system.
HARRISBURG — Child abuse reports increased across the state in 2016, 46 children died from neglect and abuse, while 79 children nearly died, according to numbers released Thursday in a new report by Auditor General Eugene DePasquale.
The state’s auditor general is calling the system ‘broken’ and demanding a fix after examining Pennsylvania’s Children and Youth Services system for the past year.
“Pennsylvania’s child welfare system is broken. This is not hyperbole or exaggeration,” wrote DePasquale in an executive summary of a special report released Thursday.
PA Auditor General releases report on ‘broken’ child welfare system.
The auditor general released the 80-page special report “State of the Child” that examines “the strengths and challenges of Pennsylvania’s child-welfare system, specifically, it focuses on county CYS caseworkers,” according to a news release.
When families are no longer functional, it’s the job of CYS to step in and provide support and assistance. However, CYS agencies have been drowning in paperwork and staff turnover, so their primary mission of protecting children has been lost in the frantic rush just to survive each day.
PA Auditor General releases report on ‘broken’ child welfare system.
Overregulation and a shortage of critical resources have resulted in kids being left in situations that led to their deaths. It’s that simple.Eugene DePasquale, Pennsylvania’s Auditor General
The report offered seven observations and 17 recommendations for improving the current law.
Those recommendations include appointing an independent child protection ombudsman, work to reduce paperwork requirements and update job descriptions for levels of caseworkers.
State lawmakers enacted what was described at the time as significant reforms in the state’s Child Protective Services Law after the Jerry Sandusky child-sex abuse scandal.
In a press conference, DePasquale said the 24 pieces of legislation, which included expanding the definition of child abuse and those considered mandated reporters did not add more resources for county workers.
He reported that caseloads went from about 12 to 20 per caseworker to 50 to 75 cases per employees.
Cambria County Children and Youth Services caseworkers reportedly had contact with 37 percent of the county’s population under 18 in 2016.
DePasquale said not all children were abused, but that in a single year, caseworkers had contact with nearly 10,000 children in Cambria County.
“Intake caseworkers tend to be new college grads, fresh out of school and looking to make a difference in the world,” DePasquale said. “These are new professionals who often lack real-world experience with the types of volatile situations they encounter and are expected to manage.
Then, the opioid epidemic hit the state.
“We know opioid addiction rips families apart,” DePasquale said. “When families are no longer functional, it’s the job of CYS to step in and provide support and assistance.
“However, CYS agencies have been drowning in paperwork and staff turnover, so their primary mission of protecting children has been lost in the frantic rush just to survive each day. Overregulation and a shortage of critical resources have resulted in kids being left in situations that led to their deaths. It’s that simple.”
