This is why people shouldn't become foster parents in order to make money

Seneca foster care aid above Ohio average
Dutro, Nick. Tiffin Advertiser Tribune, June 15, 2008.

Makaylah Herbert (from left), Makennah Herbert, India Herbert, Janet, a family friend, and Malachi Herbert are the foster adopted children of Amber Herbert. Herbert has been a foster care provider for three years and has had 12 children in her care.

According to a news release from the National Foster Parent Association, the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates the cost of raising a child in the United States will cost more than $204,000 for a middle-income family to raise a child born in 2007 until his or her 18th birthday.

According to the Web site Hitting The M.A.R.C. (Minimum Adequate Rates for Children), the “current foster care rates for Ohio must be doubled in order to cover the real costs of providing care for children.”

M.A.R.C. reported Ohio’s average monthly foster care rate is $275 for every child in foster care, and the actual rates should be between $635 plus travel and child care expenses for a child at the age of 2 and $797 plus travel and child care expenses for a child at the age of 16.

M.A.R.C. is a recent study by the National Foster Care Association that calculates the proposed minimum foster care rates for every state.

In Seneca County, the monthly foster care rates are well above the average in Ohio.

A child in Seneca County between the ages of 0 to 10 years old receives a flat rate of $15 a day, about $450 a month. Children 11 and older receive a flat rate of $20 a day, about $600 a month.

Families also receive extra money for experience and training, or if a child has special needs.

“It’s really based off each individual child and each individual family,” Mindy Strup said.

Strup, foster care and adoption supervisor for Seneca County Department of Job and Family Services, said the rates increase the more experience a family has and with the number of training hours they have completed.

A family that has completed 20 years of foster care and 300 hours of training could receive an extra $4 a day as the maximum amount.

There is also an initial perdium of $75 dollars a day for the first three days that is granted for children who initially are placed in foster care or reintroduced after a period of 12 months. This can be used for initial expenses, such as transportation and clothing.

As well as the perdium, Seneca County Department of Job and Family Services offers a number of other financial aid options for foster families.

Families are connected with the Lima food bank, and receive items such as diapers, laundry soap, and food at a reduced cost.

Strup said Job and Family Services also has an account people in the community and businesses can donate to which can be used for graduation expenses, prom attire, trips, sports equipment or other expenses. The agency also has a separate account for Christmas gifts.

“We try to do anything and everything that we’re able to cover to help the kids have the same experiences as any other kid without having the family have to cover those costs,” Strup said.

Job and Family Services also has an independent living fund, which can help provide supplies such as towels and bedding for children who are 16 and older, and ready to live on their own.

Every child in Ohio also is given a Medicaid card. If there are things the medical card does not cover, the agency will provide the families with the necessary aid.

Seneca County Department of Job and Family Services covers the cost of day care for their foster families, which is not the case for every county in Ohio.

“For any of our Seneca County families that have employment inside or outside the home, we provide up to 40 hours a week of paid foster care day care so they don’t have that cost,” Strup said.

Strup said the families know they may have to cover some of the costs for the children they take in.

“I have never had a family come to me and say, ‘This is such a financial burden, I can’t do this,’” Strup said. “Families know in a very short order that there may be costs that they incur as a result of parenting the children.”

Amber Herbert, a foster care provider, said the perdium may not cover everything, but it is a great help.

“Does it meet all the child’s needs? Not usually,” Herbert said. “But foster parents are not into fostering to make money, they’re into fostering for the children.

Herbert has been a foster care provider in Seneca County for three years and has had 12 children in her home during that time. She has adopted four children since she has become a foster parent, three of which were under her care before adoption.

“Anybody who wants to adopt, this (is) the best way,” Herbert said. “There are so many children now that need a home.”

There are 15 licensed homes in Seneca County and 29 foster parents, with more in the application process. There are currently 65 children in foster care in Seneca County.

The number of children in foster care has been as low as 50 and as high as 85.