Fam ily First Act Where is it Now ?

It'sbeenfiveyearssincetheFamiliesPrioritized PreventiveServicesAct (FFPSA) went into effect inWashington withbipartisan support At the time,many supportershailedthelaw asahistoric and transformativeachievement However, the resultssofar leaveroom for improvement.

FFPSA hadtwo main goals Oneisto increase federal fundingfor programsto strengthenfamilies andkeepmorechildrenout of foster care, and the other isto keep morefoster childreninfamily homesrathert han grouphomes. to reducefederal funding for community carein

So far, thelaw haslargelyfailedonbothfronts On theprevention front, thereareseveral legislative issuesthat impedetheeffectivenessof thelaw, includingstrict criteriafor what constitutesan "evidence-based"program.Eligibility restrictions restrictingservicestochildrenandfamiliesat ?immediaterisk?to beplacedin foster care. and many administrativeburdensthat makeit difficult for statesand countiesto enforcethelaws. Theconsequencesof thesebureaucratichurdles areclear. According to thelatest federal data available,only her 6,200 children nationwide receiveservicestotaling$29 million in FFPSA funding.With approximately 800,000 corroborated reportsof abuseandneglect each year, theFFPSA hasprovengrossly inadequate. Curiously, thesurprisingly limited deployment of thesepreventiveservicesisrarely discussed in Washington