(Washington, D.C.) – The U.S. Administration for Children and Families published a rule urging child welfare agencies to develop different standards for grandparents, aunts and uncles or other kinship caregivers who step in to raise children who can no longer live with their parents.
Before the new rule, federal regulations required child welfare agencies to use the same licensing standards for kin and non-kin caregivers, which resulted in many kin caregivers either being denied the ability to care for children or being asked to care for children with little financial support.
This rule will allow child welfare agencies to adopt kin-specific licensing or approval standards for kinship foster family homes and allow kin caregivers to receive the same level of financial assistance as non-kin caregivers who take children into their homes.
