Reentry into the foster care system after reunification

Abstract

Permanency is a key outcome for child welfare services and reunification is the preferred exit when possible. Any analysis of reunification is incomplete without examining children who reenter foster care. This study describes the odds of reentry into foster care for children up to fifteen years old when they first entered the foster care system, who entered foster care for the first time between 1998 and 2002 (137,385 children) and exited to reunification within one year of entry (45,154 children). Instances of reentry into foster care within one year of reunification are identified (6021 children). This study examines the issue of reentry into foster care post-ASFA and expands the literature on reentry through the examination of several factors not previously addressed: the primary language spoken at home, presence of siblings in foster care, and census based demographic factors. Logistic regression is used to model reentry examining demographic and child welfare characteristics while adjusting for non-independence caused by the presence of sibling groups.