Why do people who can barely care for their own family financially think fostering kids is going to solve....?

Corn is not dog food! No wheat!

Well, a co-worker of mine was planning her second child KNOWING she didn't have the money to pay for it. She couldn't afford the company's benefits package, but she was planning a baby.

She was counting on Welfare, WIC, and other agencies to help her out.

I understand if it's an unplanned pregnancy, or if a woman suddenly finds herself alone, jobless with a baby to feed, but PLANNING on government assistance before the pregnancy?

Shameful.

I think that there are plenty of people taking advantage of the system and it's all horrible.

monkeykitty83

I didn't really notice, because I don't tend to look at people's other questions before I respond. I just answer what's at hand, so I tend to figure stuff like that is just wanting to know the basic procedures... which are good to be aware of.

But... yeah. I totally agree with you. Foster care stipends at best cover the kids' actual needs, and more often aren't sufficient to that. Foster parents who are making income that way are shortchanging the kids, and that's sad.

I really wish all the people fostering would go into it with a focus on helping the children, not their own gain.

Just a Mom

I get what you are saying, but we were hardly rich when we became foster parents and definitely aren't now. Some people just want to help kids and if they wait until they are rich, they are going to miss their chance.

But yes, I do know that there are scum bag foster parents out there. I don't think it gives the rest of us a very good name.

I heart avacados

Well unfortunately it's very easy to become a foster parent---I mean just LOOK at all the idiots that are! The problem is, these crooks USE the children for income. When you are a foster parent, you get a check for a certain amount for that child. The RARE foster parents that do the correct thing use the check (which is intended ONLY for the child) on the child. What MANY crooked foster parents do is use the check they receive to care for the child as income, while providing BARE MINIMUM support for the child in their home, who BTW has already had a terrible life. I used to be a CPS caseworker and I even had foster parents who would take exclusively "high risk" children into their homes because those are the children that are "worth" the most money. See, foster children who haven't been 100% screwed up by their terrible parents and that still act relatively normal need the least money, because they are less expensive since they need less psychiatric appointments, etc. The children that behave the worst and require the most counseling and treatments get the biggest checks. Therefore, many foster parents will ask to have well-behaved children sent from their home so that they can have a "high-risk" child move in in order to receive larger checks. I knew a couple that ADOPTED two large sibling groups, all high-risk children and none of these children had anything. Now where do you suppose 12 "high-risk child" checks were going all this time?

Basically, tax payers are paying a LOT of folks out there to make their living as fraudulent babysitters. Thank God for the few REAL foster parents out there that these poor children so desperately need. My aunt was one of them, and she adopted one of hers.

Temperance

When I was in foster care, I once stayed at a broken apart torn to shreds mobile home. My foster mom at the time was always smoking and had this huge bottle of whiskey stored under her bed for "safe keeping" People don't care about foster kids, that's why it's such a bad system.

Peace =]

-Tempe

cantstopLinnyG

Yeah, and they probably live in Ohio. Our Foster Care system has been in dire need of an overhaul for years.

Sly

Actually, depending on the state, the foster care payments are not necessarily insignificant! Some states pay quite well.
The link below is a state by state breakdown of maintenance payments for foster care. It was last updated in June of 08

http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/socwork/nrcfcpp/downloads/foster-care-maintenance-payments.pdf

icehockeymom7

Unfortunately, I know there are plenty of people who foster children only for the money. It's funny, because the monthly stipend for fostering really isn't very much at all....probably not even enough to feed and clothe the child. But there are still people who do it. That's not to say there aren't plenty of people who foster for all the right reasons and do a fantastic job of it. I think there are probably those types of users of the system just about everywhere. But I would say most foster parents are using the small monthly stipend to help support the child in their care.

Not Adopted

True story: I worked with a man who came into the office one day and said his wife wanted to foster. He asked her why, and she pulled out a piece of paper with the foster payment written on it and said "just look at this - how can we pass up this money?" Pretty sick, eh? Luckily, he was opposed to the idea of bringing a child into to the house in order to collect a check. Thank God.

Being rich should not be a requirement to foster, as Just a Mom noted, but you should be somewhat financially secure. It would also be preferable if they live in a solid neighborhood with access to good schools.

corcoranfaire

No idea why anyone would think they could solve money issues or make money with foster children. Kind of seems like people who get pregnant to "save" a marriage - never seen it work out but lots try it. In both cases, the children are the ones who suffer.

Opedial

I agree. I see many many families fostering who really are barely able to afford themselves. When I asked the social worker about it she told me that they need foster parents from all walks of life, and they need foster parents period. As long as the children are being cared for is the main point.

But this was a province where although the rule was four foster children to one home was bursting some homes at 12 children, putting children in daycare, and even hotels! There is a problem with the system and not enough families to care for teh children that are backlogged because of the courts!

But I digress, I think to foster you should have to provide the ability to pay for yourself without the "extra" money fostering provides.

Indian-vision

I agree with you. There would be SOME people who would get into it for the money and thats pathetic.

With due respect and admiration for all great foster parents out there.

Kate

My parents have never fostered for the money, simply for giving children a home, we specialize in newborn care.

SOUTH BEACH IS FUN BOOGIE

I live in the hood and lawd knows for some it is a business. I find it despicable and vicious and definitely not in the best interest of the children. People think its easy money not knowing it is a little more complicated than that. Someone help our foster kids.

â™¥Tiffanyâ™¥

They don't seem to understand that they won't get much money out of the deal. They think the more kids they get the more money. But there are people out there who do it for the love of kids and though they won't have much they will have a home and someone to love them.

Jackie B

I honestly didn't know about the financial assistance and the other things that came along with fostering, I was completely prepared to be able to be the one who clothed, fed them, bought their clothes, provide medical care.

A stipend or tax breaks are not my motivation to foster (or adopt). I just figured we'd be approved once we could show we could provide what the child needed.

Since financial assistance is provided and thus for some a "paycheck", I think there should be a limit to how many children you can foster. The Gravelle case alone should probably be a reason to impose a limit. Other than that, families with 10, 11, 12 foster kids can't possible provide the individual needs and attention of each child.

I've heard of people fostering/adopting large sibling groups and I can understand the need to want to take them all in, I wouldn't want to ever break up siblings, I get that. They will have each other. But to have a bunch of unrelated foster kids doesn't make sense to me.

mom to be

Because they get paid to foster and some people only see the $$$$. They dont realize that foster a child is not about the money. I know of some so called foster homes that have had over 20 kids at a time. If you dress them only in hand me down clothes, never take them any place and count on food stamps to pay for the food, your all set. Just in case people cant tell I'm being sarcastic. Do not foster just for the money.

sunshine

me being a foster child it's crazy because i see the same things ALL the time the money is good for them and they just think about that not the childs well being.

Santa's Lil' Helper

I suppose candle-making and selling tupperware requires too much effort.

dontknow86

That kind of person is doing it for $$$$

Neil

Any who actually think that, it's because they haven't a clue. Or because they are thieves at heart, and have no intention of caring properly for any children. (Or possibly because they are clueless thieves.)

Rowan

Sadly, i know of a person i lived across the street from who did just this. That is, took in foster kids for the money, and did not use the money to provide for the children unless they had too.

The only older foster kid they had,Lori, was 11 years old, really nice girl, but never had stuff, even for school. pissed me off.

I really hope there are not more people out there that does this

John V

Everyone has money problems now. We foster, we live on the east coast TRUST me the people who pocket any money from this already know they are horrible. The truth is the stipend isn't enough. there should be income guidlines, but there aren't any for giving birth. we do it because we know where these amazing kids could end up. To you who Just complain about it I would have to say step up nd be a good foster parent. Thats the only way you'll change the system. They need to have an option of where to put the kids, if the waiting list was people willing to give good homes they could be more selective. The truth is people don't want to get involved because its messy and it WILL break your heart. Giving them up when you have to. We are just about to adopt again and then we are going to move because we know we can do more if we try. To compound issues from people like you were also a gay male couple!

gibberish

I agree with you wholeheartedly. Finances DO matter and love is not enough. Children should be placed in homes that can properly care for them.

Littlegirllost

I was fostered at the age of 4yrs-11yrs and was adopted at the age of 11yrs. At the age of 17yrs I was told to move out of the house. I had no support, no guidance and no help financially. Now you would think after all those years that I was fostered that there would be some pennies saved in a piggy bank somewhere to assist with my basic needs not to mention a little college fund maybe?? Was left to fend for myself with no help whatsoever, why?-Well I guess the money stopped coming in and they wanted to wipe their hands free from me. I am now in my mid-30s and since having to leave the family home they have had little or no contact with me, and have no interest in my life or well being:( I remember asking them once to loan me some money as a deposit down on a place to live and reassuring them that I would have it paid back the following week as the landlord had stated that he needed it to reserve it for me, I was informed on the spot that they did not have that kind of money to give me and this was the only time I ever asked my step-parents for help. You would think after all the help they made off me financially over the years that they would spare me a little for my deposit?? Absolutely shameful! How can you get on with your life feeling rejection that you had as a little child to then being tormented with it all over again! I have been totally cheated, I was a pawn in their personal damned game! There are very sick people out there and unfortunately I was at the hands of two of them!!

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