Good Rules Assist Foster Parents
Indiana initiates 4 categories for reimbursement to replace previous -- and unfair -- $25 flat rate
By: The (Muncie) Star Press
Most foster parents don't take on the task of raising someone else's child because it pays well. On the contrary, being a foster parent is challenging, whether it's answering the call in the middle of the night to care for a neglected baby or to deal with a teen who has lacked proper parenting and role models.
It's a tough but gratifying job when it's done right.
It can also be an expensive one, especially if a foster child requires medical or psychological care.
Fortunately, Indiana's foster care system is about to recognize that one size does not fit all. Last week, the state announced new rules to reimburse foster parents varying amounts depending on the care a child requires and the child's age.
Gone is the $25-a-day flat rate the state had paid for each child.
Beginning Jan. 1, children will be placed in one of four categories for payment: standard foster care, foster care with services, therapeutic foster care and therapeutic plus. The daily payment could be as little as $18.25 for a child younger than 5 with minimal special needs, or as much as $66.56 for a high-needs teenager.
There are other payments a foster family can receive for extracurricular or sports activities and gifts for birthdays and Christmas.
Lest anyone believe foster parenting is a good livelihood, one official in Delaware County said that's not the case. And it's not always automatic for foster parents to be able to reap tax advantages by having foster children declared as dependents.
The new reimbursement scale answers the question: What does it cost to adequately care for a child? Unfortunately, it took a lawsuit to find that answer, because the state tried to trim expenditures to balance the budget on the backs of those who are most vulnerable.
We would also hope the state does not try to move children into less expensive reimbursement classifications as a cost-cutting move. The earlier lawsuits were spurred by the state's attempt to put finances ahead of children. To repeat that would be shameful.
We hope this new reimbursement scale will raise the quality of care foster children receive, and ease the burden on foster parents. We're sure many parents spend their own money to provide for these children, but to expect them to reverse bad parenting without adequate compensation is simply asking too much.
These new rules should go a long way toward fixing that.