In five states, there was no evidence that many children in foster care had a screening for sex trafficking when they returned after going missing

In five states, there was no evidence that many children in foster care had a screening for sex trafficking when they returned after going missing

Collection:
Health Policy and Services Research
Series Title(s):
Report in brief (United States. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of Inspector General)
Contributor(s):
United States. Department of Health and Human Services. Office of Inspector General. Office of Evaluation and Inspections, issuing body.
Publication:
Washington, D.C. : U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, July 2022
Language(s):
English
Format:
Text
Subject(s):
Child, Foster
Foster Home Care
Government Regulation
Homeless Youth
Human Trafficking -- prevention & control
Mandatory Reporting
United States
National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (U.S.)
Genre(s):
Technical Report
Abstract:
Why OIG Did This Review. In 2020, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received more than 17,000 reports of possible child sex trafficking. Traffickers are known to prey on vulnerable children with low self-esteem and minimal social support, and histories of abuse, neglect, and trauma - traits that are common among children in foster care. Because of these children’s heightened vulnerability, identifying who is, or is at risk of becoming, a victim of sex trafficking is a vital step to providing children in foster care with prevention and treatment services. How OIG Did This Review. We identified five States that (1) reported the largest number of children in “runaway status” in fiscal year 2018, and (2) required children to be screened for sex trafficking after returning from going missing from foster care. From these States, we selected a random sample of children. We reviewed foster care case file documentation for 413 children to determine the extent to which the children in our sample were screened (as required) to identify whether they were victims of sex trafficking. Additionally, we assessed the extent to which States’ policies may have contributed to the screening practices that we observed.
Copyright:
The National Library of Medicine believes this item to be in the public domain. (More information)
Extent:
1 online resource (1 PDF file (30 pages))
Illustrations:
Illustrations
NLM Unique ID:
9918716088206676 (See catalog record)
Permanent Link:
http://resource.nlm.nih.gov/9918716088206676