Skip Navigation
Administration for Children and Families  
ACF
ACF Home   |   Services   |   Working with ACF   |   Policy/Planning   |   About ACF   |   ACF News   |   HHS Home

  Questions?  |  Privacy  |  Site Index  |  Contact Us  |  Download Reader™  |  Print      


Children's Bureau Safety, Permanency, Well-being  Advanced
 Search

Home > Statistics & Research > Child Welfare Outcomes 2001 > Chapter Four > Iowa

 

Iowa

Context Data | Outcomes Data | State Comment | Federal Comment

Iowa [ Context Data ]

A. Key Context Statistics

General Population 1998 1999 2000 2001
Total children under 18 years 722,139 719,685 733,638 710,735
Race/ethnicity (%)1
 Alaska Native/American Indian 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.4
 Asian N/A N/A N/A 1.5
 Asian/Pacific Islander 1.7 1.7 1.4 N/A
 Black 2.5 2.5 2.9 3.2
Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander N/A N/A N/A 0.1
 Hispanic 3.1 3.3 4.5 4.6
 White 92.4 92.0 88.8 88.4
 Two or more races N/A N/A 1.8 1.8
 Other N/A N/A 0.2 N/A
% Child population in poverty 13.2 9.9 8.4 7.6
% Child population living in metropolitan areas 47.3 53.5 45.7 47.9
Child Welfare 1998 1999 2000 2001
Child maltreatment victims 7,311 9,763 10,822 12,792
Children in foster care on 9/30 4,920 4,854 5,068 5,202
Children adopted 525 764 729 661

1 The 2000 Census of the United States includes two new race categories: (1) Persons of two or more races and (2) Other. Back

B. Child Maltreatment Data (NCANDS)

blank cell Number Rate
Maltreatment Information Overview 1998 1999 2000 2000 1998 1998 2000 2001
Children subject of an investigated report alleging child maltreatment 28,072 26,812 31,317 37,704 38.9 per 1,000 37.3 per 1,000 42.7 per 1,000 51.6 per 1,000
Child maltreatment victims2 7,311 9,763 10,822 12,792 10.1 per 1,000 13.6 per 1,000 14.8 per 1,000 17.5 per 1,000
Child fatalities 10 11 10 15 1.4 per 100,000 1.5 per 100,000 1.4 per 100,000 2.1 per 100,000
Age of Child Victims (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Under 1 year 8.4 4.5 8.8 8.6
1-5 years 32.5 34.1 34.7 35.9
6-10 years 28.7 30.3 28.5 28.2
11-15 years 20.6 22.3 21.4 20.9
16+ years 4.8 7.4 5.6 4.9
Unknown 5.0 1.4 1.0 1.5
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 7,311 9,763 10,822 12,792
Race/Ethnicity of Child Victims (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Alaska Native/American Indian 1.3 0.9 0.8 1.0
Asian/Pacific Islander 0.3 0.7 0.6 0.6
Black 8.2 8.0 8.3 8.1
Hispanic 3.5 3.7 3.9 5.1
White 71.4 74.2 74.0 72.0
Two or more races — — — —
Other/Unknown 18.8 16.2 12.5 13.2
Total %3 103.5 103.7 100.0 100.0
Number 7,311 9,763 10,822 12,792
Maltreatment Type of Child Victims (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Emotional 0.4 1.2 1.2 1.4
Medical neglect 2.9 1.6 1.6 1.6
Neglect 59.4 63.1 68.1 71.9
Physical abuse 22.0 25.2 22.4 18.7
Sexual abuse 13.2 11.1 8.7 8.1
Other 4.1 2.4 2.8 3.8
Unknown — — — —
Total %4 102.1 104.7 104.7 105.5
Number 7,311 9,763 10,822 12,892

2 Children with more than one report of substantiated or indicated maltreatment may be counted more than once. Back
3 Percentages may total more than 100 percent because Hispanics may be counted both by Hispanic ethnicity and by race. Back
4 Percentages may total more than 100 percent because children could have been victims of more than one type of maltreatment. Back

C. Children in Foster Care
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)

Number of Children In Care on 10/1 Entered Care Exited Care In Care on 9/30 Total Served
FY1998 (10/1/97-9/30/98) 4,846 5,331 5,257 4,920 10,177
FY1999 (10/1/98-9/30/99) 4,954 5,343 5,443 4,854 10,297
FY2000 (10/1/99-9/30/00) 4,862 5,620 5,414 5,068 10,482
FY2001 (10/1/00-9/30/01) 5,085 5,829 5,712 5,202 10,914
Median Length of Stay (Months)          
FY1998 (10/1/97-9/30/98) 12.9 N/A 4.0 12.5 N/A
FY1999 (10/1/98-9/30/99) 13.5 N/A 4.7 11.7 N/A
FY2000 (10/1/99-9/30/00) 12.5 N/A 4.3 10.7 N/A
FY2001 (10/1/00-9/30/01) 11.3 N/A 4.2 10.7 N/A
Age of Children in Foster Care (%) In Care on 10/1/97 In Care on 10/1/98 In Care on 10/1/99 In Care on 10/1/00 Entered Care During FY 1998 Entered Care During FY 1999 Entered Care During FY 2000 Entered Care During FY 2001 Exited Care During FY 1998 Exited Care During FY 1999 Exited Care During FY 2000 Exited Care During FY 2001 In Care on 9/30/98 In Care on 9/30/99 In Care on 9/30/00 In Care on 9/30/01
Under 1 year 2.5 2.6 2.4 3.2 5.3 4.9 6.4 6.7 2.5 2.3 2.9 2.9 2.6 2.4 3.2 3.7
1-5 years 18.4 17.2 16.9 16.8 13.2 15.0 15.2 17.0 14.0 15.4 15.8 14.6 16.8 16.4 16.7 20.4
6-10 years 20.1 20.1 18.5 16.9 13.0 12.9 13.4 14.3 12.3 14.1 13.7 13.8 19.9 18.1 16.4 16.6
11-15 years 35.6 36.4 37.6 38.1 44.1 43.0 40.9 40.0 34.6 33.4 32.7 34.6 37.1 38.5 38.5 36.1
16-18 years 23.3 23.6 24.5 24.9 24.4 24.1 24.0 21.9 36.0 34.6 34.5 33.8 23.4 24.4 25.0 23.0
19+ years 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 — — 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.2
Unknown 0.0 — — 0.0 0.1 — 0.1 0.0 0.1 — 0.0 0.0 — — 0.0 0.0
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 4,846 4,954 4,862 5,085 5,331 5,343 5,620 5,829 5,257 5,443 5,414 5,712 4,920 4,854 5,068 5,202
Race/Ethnicity of Children in Foster Care (%)5 In Care on 10/1/97 In Care on 10/1/98 In Care on 10/1/99 In Care on 10/1/00 Entered Care During FY 1998 Entered Care During FY 1999 Entered Care During FY 2000 Entered Care During FY 2001 Exited Care During FY 1998 Exited Care During FY 1999 Exited Care During FY 2000 Exited Care During FY 2001 In Care on 9/30/98 In Care on 9/30/99 In Care on 9/30/00 In Care on 9/30/01
Alaska Native/American Indian 2.7 2.6 2.1 2.3 1.5 1.7 1.4 2.1 1.7 2.3 1.4 2.0 2.5 1.9 2.1 2.4
Asian — — 0.8 0.9 — — 0.9 0.7 — — 0.9 0.9 — — 0.9 0.7
Asian/Pacific 0.8 0.6 — — 0.7 0.9 — — 0.8 0.7 — — 0.7 0.9 — —
Black 13.6 13.6 12.3 11.5 10.2 9.1 9.3 10.8 10.3 10.6 10.3 10.5 13.5 12.0 11.1 11.8
Native Hawaiian/ Other Pacific Islander — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Hispanic 3.1 3.9 4.0 4.2 3.7 3.8 4.1 4.6 3.1 3.7 4.1 4.1 3.8 4.0 4.0 4.7
White 72.9 71.0 71.3 70.6 70.6 72.0 71.8 71.0 71.9 71.5 72.6 71.4 71.5 71.5 70.5 70.1
Two or more races 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.6 0.1 0.2 1.1 0.2 0.0 0.1 0.6 0.4 0.2 0.3 0.8 0.4
Unknown 6.7 8.2 9.2 9.9 13.1 12.4 11.4 10.7 12.2 11.2 10.1 10.6 7.8 9.4 10.6 9.9
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 4,846 4,954 4,862 5,085 5,331 5,343 5,620 5,829 5,257 5,443 5,414 5,712 4,920 4,854 5,068 5,202

5 In this and subsequent race/ethnicity tables, data for two or more races may be provided for 1998 and 1999 because of States' resubmissions. However, data for 1998 and 1999 may not capture all children of two or more races and therefore may not be comparable to the 2000 data pertaining to two or more races. Back

D. Children Waiting to Be Adopted
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)6

Overview 9/30/98 9/30/99 9/30/00 9/30/01
Children waiting to be adopted 1,039 1,044 1,019 1,130
Children whose parents' rights have been terminated (TPR) 938 922 826 961
Age of Waiting Children (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Under 1 year 2.1 2.4 1.8 2.2
1-5 years 33.5 32.6 31.6 34.3
6-10 years 36.4 32.9 31.1 27.9
11-15 years 23.1 25.7 29.0 28.5
16+ years 4.6 5.4 5.9 6.6
Unknown 0.3 1.2 0.7 0.5
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 1,039 1,044 1,019 1,130
Race/Ethnicity of Waiting Children (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Alaska Native/American Indian 5.4 4.3 3.1 2.7
Asian — — 0.6 0.4
Asian/Pacific Islander 1.1 0.4 — —
Black 20.3 19.1 17.6 13.7
Native Hawaiian/ Other Pacific Islander — — — —
Hispanic 3.5 5.6 4.8 6.4
White 66.3 63.7 63.9 66.4
Two or more races — — 0.6 0.7
Unknown 3.5 7.0 9.4 9.6
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 1,039 1,044 1,019 1,130

6 Waiting children are children who have a goal of adoption and/or whose parentsÂ’ rights have been terminated. Children 16 years and older with TPR, but with a goal of emancipation, have been excluded from the waiting children and TPR populations. Back

E. Children Adopted
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)

Age of Adopted Children (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Under 1 year 0.8 1.2 1.8 2.0
1-5 years 47.0 44.4 44.9 43.7
6-10 years 36.8 37.7 34.3 31.6
11-15 years 13.1 14.9 17.6 19.1
16+ years 2.3 1.8 1.5 3.6
Unknown — — — —
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 525 764 729 661
Race/Ethnicity of Adopted Children (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Alaska Native/American Indian 5.5 3.3 3.2 3.0
Asian — — — 1.1
Asian/Pacific Islander 1.0 1.2 — —
Black 16.6 17.8 20.4 20.6
Native Hawaiian/ Other Pacific Islander — — — —
Hispanic 2.3 5.2 6.0 6.2
White 69.1 64.1 65.6 63.2
Two or more races — — — —
Unknown 5.5 8.4 4.8 5.9
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 525 764 729 661

Back to Top

Iowa [ Outcomes Data ]

1. Reduce Recurrence of Child Abuse and/or Neglect
(NCANDS)

1.1 Recurrence of Maltreatment Within 6 Months (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Children without a recurrence 90.8 91.6 88.2 88.8
Children with one or more recurrences 9.2 8.4 11.8 11.2
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 8,698 8,699 5,041 6,184

Bar chart describing Percentage of Children With One or More Recurrences of Maltreatment within 6 months data from Table 1.1 above.

2. Reduce the Incidence of Child Abuse and/or Neglect in Foster Care
(NCANDS, AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database Jan —Sept)

2.1 Maltreatment in Foster Care (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Children maltreated while in foster care 0.43 0.45 0.79 0.89
Children not maltreated while in foster care 99.57 99.55 99.21 99.11
Total % 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00
Number 8,875 9,127 9,381 9,638

Bar chart describing Percentage of Children Maltreated While in Foster Care data from Table 2.1 above.

3. Increase Permanency for Children in Foster Care
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)

3.1 Exits from Foster Care (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Adoption 10.2 14.1 13.3 11.6
Guardianship — — — 0.6
Reunification 79.3 77.3 78.4 79.6
Other 9.9 8.3 8.2 8.2
Missing data 0.6 0.3 0.0 0.0
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 5,257 5,443 5,414 5,712

Pie Charts describing data from Table 3.1 above.

3.2 Exits of Disabled Children (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Adoption 27.0 40.8 43.8 39.5
Guardianship — — — 0.4
Reunification 55.6 47.7 43.9 47.3
Other 15.8 10.8 12.3 12.7
Missing data 1.6 0.7 — —
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 891 969 886 919
3.3 Exits of Children Over Age 12 at Entry (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Adoption 0.5 0.4 0.5 0.9
Guardianship — — — 0.4
Reunification 84.1 86.4 87.0 86.7
Other 15.3 13.2 12.5 12.0
Missing data 0.1 0.0 — —
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 3,175 3,106 2,995 3,127
3.4 Exits to Emancipation (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Children age 12 or younger at entry 2.7 9.5 18.1 26.0
Children older than 12 at entry 97.3 90.5 81.9 74.0
Missing data — — — —
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 255 231 249 269
3.5 Exits by Race/Ethnicity (%)
blank cell Alaska Native/A.I. Asian Asian/Pacific Islander Black Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander
1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001
Adoption 32.6 20.2 29.9 18.6 — — — 11.1 11.6 21.6 — — 17.0 23.2 24.7 19.5 — — — —
Guardianship — — — 0.9 — — — — — — — — — — — 0.7 — — — —
Reunification 53.9 73.4 64.9 70.8 — — 95.7 75.9 74.4 59.5 — — 70.2 68.3 68.3 72.2 — — — —
Other 11.2 6.5 5.2 9.7 — — 4.3 13.0 11.6 18.9 — — 10.7 8.3 6.8 7.7 — — — —
Missing data 2.2 — — — — — — — 2.3 — — — 2.0 0.2 0.2 — — — — —
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 — — 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 — — 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 — — — —
Number 89 124 77 113 — — 47 54 43 37 — — 540 577 558 601 — — — —
blank cell Hispanic White Unable to Determine Two or More Races Missing Data
1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001 1998 1999 2000 2001
Adoption 9.3 19.6 18.9 15.7 9.7 12.7 11.7 9.6 4.9 11.0 10.2 13.7 — — — 26.1 — — — —
Guardianship — — — — — — — 0.7 — — — 0.2 — — — — — — — —
Reunification 85.8 73.9 74.8 75.0 79.9 78.4 79.8 81.1 85.8 81.6 79.4 80.8 100.0 100.0 100.0 73.9 — — — —
Other 4.3 6.5 6.3 9.3 10.2 8.6 8.4 8.6 8.9 7.2 10.4 5.4 — — — — — — — —
Missing data 0.6 — — — 0.3 0.3 — 0.0 0.5 0.2 — — — — — — — — — —
Total % 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 — — — —
Number 162 199 222 236 3,782 3,892 3,928 4,077 639 608 549 608 2 6 33 23 — — — —

4. Reduce Time to Reunification Without Increasing Re-entry
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)

4.1 Time to Reunification (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Less than 12 mos. 81.0 80.2 81.1 81.1
At least 12 mos., but less than 24 mos. 11.5 13.2 11.6 12.1
At least 24 mos., but less than 36 mos. 3.7 3.2 3.4 3.2
At least 36 mos., but less than 48 mos. 2.1 1.1 1.3 1.3
48 or more mos. 0.9 1.5 1.8 1.8
Missing data 0.8 0.7 0.8 0.6
Total (%) 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 4,168 4,207 4,247 4,547

Bar chart describing reunification percentages data in Table 4.1 above.

4.2 Children Who Entered Foster Care (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Children entering care for the first time 66.4 64.8 66.4 67.1
Children re-entering care within 12 mos. of a prior episode 27.0 26.7 24.9 24.4
Children re-entering care more than 12 mos. after a prior episode 5.7 7.7 8.2 7.9
Missing data 0.9 0.8 0.5 0.6
Total (%) 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 5,331 5,343 5,620 5,829

Bar chart describing re-entries into Foster Care within 12 months from data in Table 4.2 above.

5. Reduce Time in Foster Care to Adoption
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)

5.1 Time to Adoption (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Less than 12 mos. 17.3 15.5 18.6 18.1
At least 12 mos., but less than 24 mos. 23.2 22.0 20.8 27.9
At least 24 mos., but less than 36 mos. 32.0 27.4 27.4 26.9
At least 36 mos., but less than 48 mos. 17.7 22.1 19.2 15.0
48 or more mos. 8.7 12.7 13.8 11.8
Missing data 1.1 0.3 0.3 0.3
Total (%) 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 538 769 720 662

Bar Chart describing Percentage of Adoptions Occurring in Less Than 24 or greater than 48 Months of Entry data from Table 5.1 above

6. Increase Placement Stability
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)

6.1 Number of Placements by Time in Care (%) Year Children With 2 or Fewer Placements Children With 3 or More Placements Missing Data Total % Number
Less than 12 mos. 1998
1999
2000
2001		 87.7
89.2
88.6
88.8		 12.3
10.8
11.4
11.2		 —
—
—
—		 100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0		 6,100
6,162
6,474
6,782
At least 12 mos., but <24 mos. 1998
1999
2000
2001		 56.3
58.0
53.8
54.7		 43.7
42.0
46.2
45.3		 —
—
—
—		 100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0		 1,746
1,750
1,743
1,935
At least 24 mos., but <36 mos. 1998
1999
2000
2001		 34.4
33.3
38.1
33.7		 65.6
66.7
61.9
66.3		 —
—
—
—		 100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0		 993
958
908
900
At least 36 mos., but <48 mos. 1998
1999
2000
2001		 33.7
28.6
25.4
27.5		 66.3
71.4
74.6
72.5		 —
—
—
—		 100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0		 751
598
531
520
48 or more mos. 1998
1999
2000
2001		 46.2
34.6
29.4
26.0		 53.8
65.4
70.6
74.0		 —
—
—
—		 100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0		 528
772
779
734
Missing data 1998
1999
2000
2001		 100.0
100.0
100.0
97.7		 —
—
—
2.3		 —
—
—
—		 100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0		 59
57
47
43

Bar chart describing foster care placements over time percentages data from Table 6.1 above.

7. Reduce Placements of Young Children in Group Homes or Institutions
(AFCARS Annual Foster Care Database)

7.1 Most Recent Placement Settings of Children Who Entered Care During the Fiscal Year and Were Age 12 or Younger at the Time of This Placement (%) 1998 1999 2000 2001
Group homes 14.8 17.7 16.8 18.0
Institutions 5.6 6.1 4.7 4.6
Other settings 78.0 74.4 78.3 77.3
Missing data 1.6 1.7 0.3 —
Total (%) 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Number 2,120 2,197 2,416 2,722

Back to Top

Iowa [ State Comment ]

Mary Nelson, Administrator Division of Behavioral, Developmental and Protective Services for Families, Adults and Children Iowa Department of Human Services 515-281-5521

Iowa's comments to be included in Child Welfare Outcomes 2001: Report to Congress are the following:

Iowa's child welfare system serves children placed due to delinquency, emotional/behavioral problems, and abuse/neglect. Our caseloads and supervisor-to-worker ratios are two to three times national standards.

With regard to safety, child abuse reports have continued to increase. In 2001, Iowa's recurrence rate and incidence of abuse in care are both higher than the national standard. However, our 2002 data indicate an abuse in care rate of 0.40%, which is within the national standard. Last year we reviewed a sample of recurrence data, and found that 20% did not reflect subsequent abuse- rather, they reflected updated information on the same incident or an incident that occurred before our first contact with the family. Excluding these would reduce our recurrence rate to 9.4%.

With regard to permanency, Iowa's "time to reunification", placement stability, and "time to adoption" rates continue to meet the national standard. In 2002, DHS set an all-time record of 792 adoptions.

Iowa foster care re-entry rate is higher than the national standard. Re-entry rates are highest for youth age 11 and older who are in placement due to their behavior rather than abuse/neglect. In these situations, brief placements help to maintain youth in their permanent placement. Additionally, in Iowa when a child is returned home, the court returns custody to the family immediately rather than using a "trial home visit" where the state maintains custody for a period of time, allowing the child to come back into care without counting as a "re-entry".

Iowa's data indicates 18% of youth age 12 and under are placed in group care, which is higher than the national median of 3.4%. We will be examining this as part of our CFSR PIP.

DHS remains committed to working with the Courts and others to improve the safety, permanency and well-being of the children and families we serve.

Back to Top

Iowa [ Federal Comment ]

The following discussion focuses on Iowa's performance with regard to each of the outcomes assessed in the Child Welfare Outcomes Annual Reports to Congress. The Iowa Child and Family Services Review (CFSR) was completed in fiscal year (FY) 2003, and compliance with the national standards was based on data from [year?]. The final report for that review is available from http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/cb/publications/cwo01. A discussion of the implications of CFSR findings for Iowa's performance on the Report to Congress Outcomes is provided in Child Welfare Outcomes 2000.

The State's performance is assessed by examining the percent change in the data for each outcome measure from 1999 to 2001. The percent change was calculated using data carried out to the second decimal point. However, with the exception of outcome measure 2.1, the data presented in the Report to Congress are rounded to one decimal for ease of reading the tables (measure 2.1 must be presented as two decimals because the national standard is less than one percent).

Outcome 1. Reduce recurrence of child abuse and/or neglect
In calendar year (CY) 2001, the rate of maltreatment recurrence in less than 6 months was 11.2 percent, which does not meet the national standard of 6.1 percent or less and is higher than the national median of 8.0 percent. Performance on this measure declined from 1999 to 2001 (+33.2 percent change). The State notes in its comment letter that this rate is inflated, because some reports reflect updated information on the same incident or an incident that occurred before the agency's first contact with the family. Final Report information identified the following as potential barriers to preventing maltreatment recurrence: (1) lack of comprehensive assessments of risk to capture underlying problems in the family, particularly mental health issues; (2) a scarcity of substance abuse treatment services for parents; and (3) high caseloads that make it difficult for workers to monitor families.

Outcome 2. Reduce incidence of maltreatment in foster care
In CY 2001, the incidence of maltreatment in foster care was 0.89 percent, which does not meet the national standard of 0.57 percent or less and is higher than the national median of 0.47 percent. Performance on this measure declined substantially from 1999 to 2001 (+98.5 percent change). CFSR Final Report information suggests that performance on this measure may be attributed in part to: (1) extremely high caseloads that make it difficult for workers to monitor children in foster care; (2) placing too many children in foster homes; and (3) insufficient matching of children's needs with foster homes capable of meeting those needs.

Outcome 3. Increase permanency for children in foster care
In FY 2001, 91.8 percent of children leaving foster care were discharged to permanent homes (which is higher than the national median of 85.3 percent); 87.2 percent of children with a diagnosed disability who exited foster care were discharged to permanent homes (which is higher than the national median of 78.4 percent); and 88.0 percent of children exiting foster care who were older than age 12 at the time of entry into foster care were discharged to permanent homes (which is higher than the national median of 72.3 percent). In addition, 26.0 percent of the children who were emancipated from foster care in FY 2001 were 12 years old or younger at the time they entered foster care, which is less than the national median of 28.0 percent. Although there were no substantive changes in performance from FY 1999 to FY 2001 for any of the measures related to the percent of children discharged to permanent homes, there was a large decline in performance related to the percent of the children emancipated from foster care who were 12 years old or younger at the time they entered foster care (+173.2 percent change). Information from the CFSR Final Report identifies Family Team Meetings and Alternative Dispute Resolution as measures contributing to permanency for children in foster care.

Outcome 4. Reduce time to reunification without increasing re-entry
In FY 2001, the percentage of all reunifications occurring within 12 months of children's entry into foster care was 81.1, which exceeds the national standard of 76.2 percent and is greater than the national median of 69.2 percent. Performance on this measure did not change substantively from FY 1999 to FY 2001. CFSR Final Report information identifies the following as supporting timely reunification: (1) Family Team Meetings; (2) intensive services and supports for families; and (3) frequent visitation between children in foster care and their parents. However, the CFSR Final Report also notes that the frequency of face-to-face contact between caseworkers and children and parents is generally insufficient to promote attainment of permanency goals.

Iowa's performance in FY 2001 with regard to the percentage of re-entries into foster care within 12 months of discharge from a prior foster care episode was 24.4 percent. This does not meet the national standard of 8.6 or less and is greater than the national median of 10.4. However, performance on this measure improved from FY 1999 to FY 2000 (-8.5 percent change). Information from the CFSR Final Report identifies the following as barriers to preventing re-entry into foster care: (1) premature reunification, and (2) lack of post-reunification supports. The State's self-assessment notes that the re-entry rate is also affected by a program to provide brief out-of-home placements to stabilize families in crisis.

Outcome 5. Reduce time in foster care to adoption
In FY 2001, the percentage of all adoptions finalized within 24 months of a child's entry into foster care was 46.0, which exceeds the national standard of 32.0 percent or more and the national median of 21.0 percent. Performance on this measure improved from FY 1999 to FY 2001 (+23.0 percent change). Information from the CFSR Final Report identifies the following as contributing to timely adoptions: (1) timely filing for termination of parental rights (TPR), and (2) use of cross-jurisdictional resources for waiting children.

Outcome 6. Increase placement stability
In FY 2001, the percentage of children who were in foster care for less than 12 months and experienced no more than 2 placements was 88.8, which meets the national standard of 86.7 percent or more and exceeds the national median of 83.3 percent. Performance on this measure did not change substantively from FY 1999 to FY 2000. Information from the CFSR Final Report suggests that the pre-service foster parent training using the Parenting for Safety Model Approach to Partnerships in Parenting (PS-MAPP) curriculum contributes to placement stability.

Outcome 7. Reduce placements of young children in group homes and institutions
In FY 2001, the percentage of children age 12 or younger placed in a group home or institution was 22.6, which is higher than the national median of 8.7 percent. Iowa's performance on this measure improved slightly from FY 1999 to FY 2001 (-5.0 percent). Information from the CFSR Final Report notes that children are often placed in emergency shelter care by law enforcement and that length of stay in shelters is increasing due to lack of foster homes and a long waiting list for treatment facilities.

Back to Top

Return to Chapter IV State Data Pages

Return to Table of Contents