Columnist Sandy Thompson: Kinship care a step in the right direction

Sandy Thompson

Friday, Nov. 16, 2001 | 5:11 a.m.

The state Welfare Division is accepting applications for kinship care, which was approved by the last Legislature for certain relatives caring for children.

Kinship care is a growing national trend aimed at keeping children in their relatives' care rather than placing them in the foster care system. Most are grandparents who take in their grandchildren because the parents are unable to care for them.

The American Association of Retired Persons estimates that 4.5 million children under 18 are growing up in grandparent-headed households. About one-third of the children don't have a parent present in the home.

According to the 2000 Census, 30,580 children live in grandparent-headed households in Nevada. That's a whopping 109 percent increase since 1990.

The 2001 Legislature addressed the issue by passing the kinship care bill -- due largely in part to a one-woman crusade by a Boulder City grandmother who cares for her 5-year-old granddaughter and 15-year-old grandson.

Jane Horner researched kinship care legislation and programs passed by other states, and garnered the support of state and local welfare officials to create such a program in Nevada.

The only "catch" with Nevada's kinship care is that the relative must be 62 or older. According to the AARP, the majority of grandparents raising their grandchildren are between 55 and 64.

Horner says Nevada legislators probably would not have passed the bill if the age had been lower because of the costs. However, she intends to lead the charge during the next legislative session to get the age lowered to 55. In the meantime, she says, Nevada's kinship care program is a good start.

Under the program, grandparents and relatives who have legal guardianship of children may be eligible for $534 per month for each child younger than 12, and $616 per month for each child 13 and older. The actual payments will be determined based on the child's income (child support, Social Security benefits, etc.).

Applicants must have legal guardianship. Those who don't can start the process by contacting Nevada Legal Aid (386-0404), Horner says.

Some grandparents are reluctant to obtain guardianship because they don't want to take legal action against their children. Some have obtained support orders, but find themselves in a financial bind when their children don't pay. Horner says grandparents and other relatives who don't qualify for kinship care can apply for welfare assistance as non-needy caretakers. Applications, she says, can be made in the children's names.

Under the kinship care program, applicants must be fingerprinted and go through criminal background checks just as foster parents must. The program also may provide support services such as child care, respite care and transportation costs.

Horner says more than 25 states have some sort of kinship care. It's a step in the right direction since the numbers of grandparents and relatives caring for children continue to rise.

It makes more sense to assist relative caregivers than to place children in the foster care system. It also will be less costly in the long run.

More important, it may provide more stability for children.