[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 103 (Friday, June 20, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5941-S5942]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. ROCKEFELLER:
S. 3173. A bill to amend part E of title IV of the Social Security
Act to allow children in foster care to be placed with their parents in
residential family treatment centers that provide safe environments for
treating addiction and promoting healthy parenting; to the Committee on
Finance.
Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, I rise before you today to introduce
the Keeping Families Safe Act of 2008 which seeks to keep families
together when a parent is in a residential substance abuse treatment
facility. Numerous studies have shown the benefits of keeping families
united as a parent undergoes substance abuse treatment. In fact, one
study found that 60 percent of mothers who participated in the Pregnant
and Postpartum Women and Their Infants program were completely clean
and sober six months after their discharge. This same study found that
88 percent of these children were still with their mothers six months
after the mother was discharged. However, only 5 percent of all
substances abuse treatment facilities are able to accommodate children.
Congress has shown support for comprehensive family based substance
abuse treatment facilities in the past. In 2006, Congress passed the
Deficit Reduction Act, which included a $40 million grant program, to
promote two key goals, substance abuse services for families in the
child welfare system, and regular caseworker visits.
The Keeping Families Safe Act is one way to invest in children and
families. This legislation would allow children, who are in foster
care, to be with their parent while he or she is receiving treatment at
residential comprehensive family-based substance abuse treatment
centers. These facilities provide comprehensive services to both parent
and child. If this family based approach is not available, these
children would often be forced to claim Federal funding in the foster
care system. By using these funds instead to go to the residential
facility with their parent, the chances for success are much greater.
Family based substance abuse treatment centers have proven to be an
effective means of treating substance abuse and reuniting families.
Many of the parents in treatment are there in hopes of overcoming their
addiction and reuniting with their children. This bill is designed to
give them that chance. I urge my colleagues to support this important
legislation to help keep families together and provide another funding
source for these important facilities.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be
placed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be
printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 3173
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Keeping Families Safe Act of
2008''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The 2001 report by the Center for Substance Abuse
Treatment (CSAT) of the Pregnant and Postpartum Women and
Their Infants Program, which provides comprehensive, family-
based treatment for substance abusing mothers and their
children, found that at 6 months post treatment--
(A) 60 percent of the mothers remained alcohol and drug-
free;
(B) drug-related offenses declined from 28 percent to 7
percent; and
(C) 75 percent of the mothers had physical custody of 1 or
more children.
(2) The 2003 evaluation of the Center for Substance Abuse
Treatment (CSAT) of the
[[Page S5942]]
Pregnant and Postpartum Women and Their Infants Program of 24
residential family-based treatment programs 6 months after
treatment revealed the following successful outcomes for
mothers and their children:
(A) 60 percent of the mothers in the programs remained
completely clean and sober 6 months after discharge.
(B) 44 percent of the children in the programs were
returned to their mothers from foster care.
(C) 88 percent of the children treated in the programs with
their mothers remained stabilized and living with their
mothers, 6 months after discharge.
(3) The Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) of the
Pregnant and Postpartum Women and Their Infants Program has
found that rates of premature delivery, low birth weight, and
infant mortality were improved for women who participated in
the program, the costs of treating such women were offset by
as much as 3 to 4 times the savings that resulted from
reduced costs of crime, foster care, Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families (TANF) assistance, and adverse birth outcomes.
SEC. 3. AUTHORITY FOR STATES TO MAKE FOSTER CARE MAINTENANCE
PAYMENTS TO RESIDENTIAL FAMILY TREATMENT
CENTERS.
(a) In General.--
(1) In general.--Section 472 of the Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 672) is amended--
(A) in subsection (b)(2)--
(i) by inserting ``or a residential family treatment
center'' after ``child-care institution''; and
(ii) by inserting ``or residential family treatment
center'' after ``such institution''; and
(B) in subsection (c)--
(i) by striking ``and'' before ``(2)''; and
(ii) by inserting before the period at the end the
following: ``; and (3) the term `residential family treatment
center' means a State licensed program that enables parents
and their children to live in a safe environment for a period
of not less than 6 months and provides, on-site or by
referral, substance abuse treatment services, children's
early intervention services, family counseling, legal
services, medical care, mental health services, nursery and
preschool, parenting skills training, pediatric care,
prenatal care, sexual abuse therapy, relapse prevention,
transportation, and job or vocational training or classes
leading to a secondary school diploma or a certificate of
general equivalence''.
(2) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraph (1)
shall take effect on October 1, 2008, without regard to
whether regulations implementing such amendments are
promulgated by such date.
(b) Evaluation and Report.--The Secretary of Health and
Human Services shall, by grant, contract, or interagency
agreement, evaluate the foster care maintenance payments made
under section 472(b)(2) of the Social Security Act on behalf
of a child who is in a residential family treatment center
(as amended by subsection (a)(1)(A)) and, not later than 3
years after the date of enactment of this Act, shall submit a
report to Congress on the results of such evaluation that
includes an analysis of the outcomes for the children in
foster care on whose behalf such payments are made.
____________________