The Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) is a federally mandated data collection system intended to provide case specific information on all children covered by the protections of Title IV-B/E of the Social Security Act (Section 427). Under the Final 1993 AFCARS’ rule, states are required to collect and submit data on all children who are under the responsiblity of the title IV-B/IV-E agency for placement, care, or supervision. Units of Response: Children in Foster Care Type of Data: Administrative Tribal Data: Unavailable Periodicity: Semiannual Demographic Indicators: Disability;Geographic Areas;Sex SORN: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/12/14/2016-29366/adoption-and-foster-care-analysis-and-reporting-system Data Use Agreement: https://www.ndacan.acf.hhs.gov/datasets/order_forms/termsofuseagreement.pdf Data Use Agreement Location: https://www.ndacan.acf.hhs.gov/datasets/order_forms/termsofuseagreement.pdf Granularity: Individual Spatial: United States Geocoding: FIPS Code

This joint Information Memorandum (IM) from the Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF); Children’s Bureau (CB); Family and Youth Services Bureau (FYSB); and the Office on Trafficking in Persons (OTIP) within the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) provides an overview of federal statutes related to human trafficking among children and youth in the child welfare system and highlights resources to meet those requirements. ACF-IM-22-01 (PDF) Metadata-only record linking to the original dataset. Open original dataset below.

This survey provides nationally representative estimates on the characteristics, living arrangements, and service accessibility of noninstitutionalized children who were living apart from their parents (in foster care, grandparent care or other nonparental care) and who were aged 0 to 16 years in 2011-2012. Data on the well-being of the children and of their caregivers are also available. The children’s nonparental care status was identified in a previous SLAITS survey, the 2011-2012 National Survey of Children’s Health.

Units of Response: Caregiver

Type of Data: Survey

Tribal Data: No

COVID-19 Data: No

Periodicity: One-time

SORN: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/09/19/2022-20139/privacy-act-of-1974-system-of-records

Data Use Agreement: No

Data Use Agreement Location: Unavailable

Equity Indicators: Disability;Ethnicity;Household Income;Household Size;Housing Status;Race;Sex

Granularity: Household

Spatial: United States

Geocoding: Unavailable

This dataset explores Foster Care FY2000 - FY2005 Entries, Exits, and Numbers of Children In Care on the Last Day of Each Federal Fiscal Year. NOTE: This table reflects State data submitted to the Children's Bureau as of March 2007. The table does not include any estimates for individual States. Jurisdictions with insufficient data ("NA") are not included in the total for that year. Pre-2003 Nevada data were generated from various sources, rather than from a statewide child welfare system. NOTE: Ideally, if the number of children in the "in care" count declines, as it did during this period, the number of exits should consistently be greater than the number of entries in that year. However, this does not occur with these data. Underreporting of foster care exits by some States is the major reason for this data quality issue.

This dataset summarizes the number of dependent children (less than 18 years old) removed from households due to parental drug abuse. The data indicates if the dependent children were placed in kinship care or not.

The total number of children in this data set are provided by the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (ACS), which publishes 5 year estimates of the population. The most recent year of entries in this data set may be available before the corresponding ACS population estimates for that year are published. In that case, the data set uses values from the most recently published ACS estimates and notes the year from which those estimates are pulled. These values are updated once the Census Bureau releases the most recent estimates.”

*Kinship care refers to the care of children by relatives or, in some jurisdictions, close family friends (often referred to as fictive kin). Relatives are the preferred resource for children who must be removed from their birth parents because it maintains the children's connections with their families.

*The Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) definition of parental drug abuse is “Principal caretaker’s compulsive use of drugs that is not of a temporary nature.”

Splitgraph serves as an HTTP API that lets you run SQL queries directly on this data to power Web applications. For example:

See the Splitgraph documentation for more information.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, and the Children’s Bureau released a brief on the use of congregate care in the child welfare system. Through examining trends from the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), federal, state, and local agencies were able to collect data elements which are designed to help policymakers and advocates better understand the population of children and youth who are likely to experience congregate care and what, if any, additional supports may be needed to further reduce reliance on it as a placement setting. Metadata-only record linking to the original dataset. Open original dataset below.

This data explores the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Administration for Children and Families Administration on Children, Youth and Families Children's Bureau Adoption of Children with Public Child Welfare Agency Involvement by State for Fiscal Years 1995 - 2006. For Fiscal Years 1995 - 1997, The data for FY 1995-FY 1997 were reported by States to set baselines for the Adoption Incentive Program. They came from a variety of sources including the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), court records, file reviews and legacy information systems. For Fiscal Years 1998 - 2006, Unless otherwise noted, the data come from the AFCARS adoption database. Because AFCARS adoption data are being continuously updated and cleaned, the numbers reported here may differ from data reported elsewhere. In addition, data reported for the Adoption Incentive Program will differ from these data because adoptions reported for that program are identified through a different AFCARS data element and must qualify in other ways to be counted toward the award of incentive funds. Counts include adoptions reported as of 6/1/2005. Where appropriate, AFCARS data have been adjusted for duplication.

The Foster Care Program helps states and participating territories and Tribes to provide safe and stable out-of- home care for eligible children and youth until they are safely returned home, placed permanently with adoptive families or legal guardians, or placed in other planned arrangements for permanency. It also provides funding for allowable pre-placement administrative activities for eligible children determined to be at imminent risk of removal who, absent effective provision of preventive services, would be placed in foster care. The program is annually appropriated and funding is awarded as an open-ended entitlement grant. The Title IV-E agency must submit quarterly reports of estimated and actual program expenditures. Funding is contingent upon an approved title IV-E plan to administer or supervise the administration of the program. The program operates in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Tribes with approved title IV-E plans. Title IV-E agencies may elect to offer foster care to eligible young people up to the age of 21. Participating young people must be completing secondary education, attending post-secondary education, working at least 80 hours per month, participating in certain pre-employment activities, or have a medical condition that prevents them from participating in education or work activities. The following states been approved to operate a foster care program serving young people over age 18: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Hawai’i, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. For maintenance payments, the Foster Care Program provides federal matching funds at the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP), which ranges from 50 to 83 percent, depending on the state's or Tribe’s per capita income. Matching funds are provided based on the expenditures made on behalf of children determined eligible for the program who are placed in a family foster home or child care institution (CCI) that meets applicable licensure and safety related requirements. As amended by the Family First Prevention Services Act, the law authorizes up to 12 months of foster care payments for a child placed with a parent residing in a licensed residential family-based treatment facility for substance abuse. The law also places time limits on the ability to claim foster care maintenance payments for children placed in certain CCI’s. Administrative costs are matched at 50 percent and include costs such as eligibility determinations, case management for children in foster care, development and operation of automated information systems, and independent legal representation. There is a 75 percent match for allowable training for title IV-E agency employees, persons preparing for employment by the title IV-E agency, foster parents, private child welfare agency staff providing services to children receiving title IV-E assistance, child abuse and neglect court personnel, guardians ad litem, court appointed special advocates, and attorneys for an agency, child, or the child’s parent. In addition, $3 million annually is reserved for technical assistance and plan development/ implementation grants to eligible Tribes. FY 2022: $5,830,000,000 Metadata-only record linking to the original dataset. Open original dataset below.

History The 1994 Amendments to the Social Security Act (SSA) authorize the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) to review State child and family service programs to ensure conformance with the requirements in titles IV-B and IV-E of the SSA. Traditionally, reviews have focused primarily on assessing State agencies' compliance with procedural requirements, as evidenced by case file documentation, rather than on the results of services and States' capacity to create positive outcomes for children and families. In addition, reviews have not provided States with opportunities for making improvements before penalties have been imposed. On January 25, 2000, the DHHS published a final rule in the Federal Register to establish a new approach to monitoring State child welfare programs. Under the rule, which became effective March 25, 2000, States will be assessed for substantial conformity with certain Federal requirements for child protective, foster care, adoption, family preservation and family support, and independent living services. The Children's Bureau, part of the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) within DHHS, is administering the review system. The system comprises two review components: (1) child and family services reviews and (2) title IV-E foster care eligibility reviews. Purpose The child and family services reviews are an important tool that will enable the Children's Bureau to accomplish the following: (1) ensure conformity with Federal child welfare requirements; (2) determine what is actually happening to children and families as they are engaged in child welfare services; and (3) assist States to enhance their capacity to help children and families achieve positive outcomes. Ultimately, the goal of the reviews is to help States to improve child welfare services and achieve the following outcomes for families and children who receive services: Safety Permanency Family and Child Well-Being The Federal Government will conduct the reviews in partnership with State child welfare agency staff; peer consultants will supplement the Federal review team. The reviews are structured to help States identify strengths and areas for improvement within their agencies and programs. The Review Process Each child and family services review is a two-stage process that comprises a Statewide Assessment and an onsite review of child and family service outcomes and program systems. For the Statewide Assessment, the Children's Bureau prepares and transmits to the State the data profiles that contain aggregate data on the State's foster care and inhome service populations. The data profiles allow each State to compare certain safety and permanency data indicators with national standards determined by the Children's Bureau. After the Statewide Assessment, an onsite review of the State child welfare program is conducted by a joint Federal-State team. The onsite portion of the review includes the following: (1) case record reviews; (2) interviews with children and families engaged in services; and (3) interviews with community stakeholders, such as the courts and community agencies, foster families, and caseworkers and service providers. At the end of the onsite review, States determined not to have achieved substantial conformity in all the areas assessed will be required to develop and implement Program Improvement Plans addressing the areas of nonconformity. The Children's Bureau will support the States with technical assistance and monitor implementation of their plans. States that do not achieve their required improvements successfully will sustain penalties as prescribed in the Federal regulations. Title IV-E Foster Care Eligibility Reviews The regulatory reviews of the foster care program focus on whether a child meets title IV-E eligibility requirements for foster care maintenance payments. Just as in the child and family services reviews, the review team comprises Federal and State representa

Users can download data regarding characteristics and adoptive experiences of families of adoptive children. Topics include type of adoption, birth family contact, developmental problems, and adoption support. BackgroundThe National Survey of Adoptive Parents (NSAP) is a SLAITS survey operated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and National Center for Health Statistics (HCHS) and is sponsored by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS). NSAP provides information on characteristics, pre-adoption experiences and post-adoption support experiences of families of adoptive children. Topics include, but are not limited to: type of adoption, birth family contact, developmental problems, and adoption support. User FunctionalityUsers can download the survey instrument and frequency counts as PDFs, the codebook into Microsoft Excel and the public-access dataset into SAS statistical software. Data NotesThe NSAP telephone interview was administered to parents (n=2,089) who adopted a child 0 to 17 years of age. Children were identified as being adopted through the US foster care system, domestic private adoption agencies, or in ternational adoption agencies. Parents were identified through the National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH). Data were collected between April 2007 and July 2008 and are available on a national level.

The State Child Abuse and Neglect (SCAN) Policies Database, supported by the Office of Planning, Research, and Evaluation, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human services, compiles data on state definitions and policies related to the surveillance of child maltreatment incidence and associated risk and protective factors. The SCAN Policies Database is a resource for researchers, analysts, and others who are interested in examining differences in definitions and policies on child maltreatment across states. A primary use of these data is to allow researchers to link the analytic files to other data sources to address important questions about how variations in states’ definitions and policies are associated with the incidence of child maltreatment, the child welfare system response, and ultimately child safety and well-being. Other data sources that can be linked with the SCAN Policies Database include data from the National Child Abuse and Neglect Data System (NCANDS), the Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS), state administrative data, and survey data. When data from the SCAN Policies Database are linked with other data sources, these data can be used to answer key research questions about how variations in definitions and policies are associated with key aspects of understanding the incidence of child abuse and neglect. The SCAN Policies Database includes state definitions and policies from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The data were collected from a review of statutes and state documentation between May 2019 - June 2020. Investigators: Elizabeth C. Weigensberg, PhD - Mathematica Nuzhat Islam, MS - Mathematica Jean Knab, PhD - Mathematica Mary A. Grider, MBA - Mathematica Jeremy Page, MA - Mathematica Sarah Bardin, BA - Mathematica

This dataset explores Early Care and Education Funding: Head Start Allocation and State-Funded Prekindergarten Participation. This data is state level and expresses the participation per state. Head Start and Early Head Start are comprehensive child development programs that serve children from birth to age 5, their families, and pregnant women. The overall goal of these programs is to increase the school readiness of young children in families earning low incomes. The Head Start program delivers comprehensive services including: education, health, nutrition, screening for developmental delays, and a variety of social services, if the family needs them. The program is designed to meet the social, emotional, physical and cognitive development of children. This data is from Latest Data: Fiscal Year 2004 (Head Start) and School Year 2002-2003 (State Funded Prekindergarten). This data is from National Child Care Information Center. Refer to NCCIC Child Care Database for detailed state information (http://nccic.org/IMS/Results.asp). Compiled by: National Association of Child Care Resources and Referral Agencies (http://www.naccrra.org/randd/head_start/expenditure.php)

The Voluntary Cooperative Information System (VCIS) compiled aggregate information about children who experienced substitute care in the United States between 1982 and 1995. Substitute care data were collected voluntarily by the American Public Welfare Association (APWA) from state agencies administering public child welfare programs. VCIS data are annual state-level counts of children entering, in, and exiting substitute care, tabulated by various child attributes such as age, sex, race/ethnicity, or duration of care. The VCIS therefore provides a basis for both cross-sectional and longitudinal state-level analysis, including through linkage to aggregated data from its successor, the Adoption and Foster Care Reporting and Analysis System (AFCARS). Investigators: Original Investigator(s): American Public Human Service Association (APHSA) (Formerly American Public Welfare Association (APWA)) Secondary Investigators:Alexander F. Roehrkasse, Ph.D. - Duke University Chiara Fontaine - Cornell University LeAnn McDowall - Cornell University Sarah Sernaker, M.S. - Duke University Clayton C. Covington, B.A. - Duke University

BackgroundChildren in foster care are classified as a highly vulnerable population and struggle with both physical and mental health problems. Medical conditions, like poor nutritional status, remain understudied in children in foster care. To our knowledge, few studies in children in U.S. foster care have quantified the prevalence of anemia, and no studies have examined the association between anemia status and relevant developmental and behavioral outcomes.Objective/aims(1) To determine the prevalence of anemia among children in or adopted from Pennsylvania foster care, between the ages of six months to ten years and (2) To examine if a child’s anemia status is associated with greater odds of relevant developmental and behavioral diagnoses.MethodsWe conducted a secondary data analysis utilizing the Medicaid Analytic eXtract database between 2010–2015. Children six months–ten years were included in the analysis if they were in or had been adopted from Pennsylvania foster care. Logistic regression was used to calculate adjusted odds ratios (AOR) with 95% confidence intervals for the association between iron status and health outcomes.ResultsA total of 50,311 children were included in our sample, of which 1,365 children (2.7%) were diagnosed with anemia. Children diagnosed with anemia had greater odds of delayed milestones (AOR: 2.38 [1.64–3.45]), specific delays in development (AOR: 1.59 [1.23–2.07]), adjustment disorder (AOR: 1.59 [1.06–2.39]), and irritability (AOR: 10.57 [3.36–33.25]), than children not diagnosed with anemia.ConclusionThe prevalence of anemia among children between six months–ten years in or adopted from the Pennsylvania foster care system is within the national rate of U.S. childhood anemia. Odds of several relevant developmental and behavioral diagnoses were greater among children diagnosed with anemia than children who were not.