Editorial: Foster care overhaul is on the way

Tuesday, July 10, 2001 | 9 a.m.

The 2001 Nevada Legislature took important steps to improve the quality of foster care in Clark County. Placing direct control of the child welfare system under the Clark County Family & Youth Services Department has received the most attention. In the past, county and state agencies shared duties in this area, a division that too often created confusion and prevented children from receiving the best possible care.

The creation of a uniform system was the centerpiece of the reforms, but there were other key measures. For starters, in a long overdue move the Legislature authorized better financial assistance for foster parents. And grandparents and relatives over the age of 62, who are caring for children who have been abandoned or neglected by their parents, will now be able to get the same level of reimbursement as foster parents. Ideally a child should stay within the family, and helping offset the costs of the additional care is in the child's best interest.

Another hopeful sign is that the new manager of Clark County government is Thom Reilly, the architect of shifting all child welfare services to the county. It also is promising that Family Court Judge Gerald Hardcastle wants to establish a system that better prepares foster children for independent living when they have to leave the system by the ages of 18 or 19.

Despite the positive steps, success won't happen overnight. For instance, lowering caseloads for case workers to reasonable levels is several years away. During this transition it is critical that all who work in the child welfare system pull together so that the children's needs come first, providing them with the same chances for success as any other child in the valley.