[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 6]
[House]
[Page 8250]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                        MAY IS FOSTER CARE MONTH

  (Mrs. LAWRENCE asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. LAWRENCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize May as National 
Foster Care Month.
  In Michigan, there are nearly 14,000 children in foster care and more 
than 400,000 children nationwide all in need of love and support. 
Studies have shown the majority of children in foster care are affected 
by mental health issues and often lack access to the help they need. We 
need to push for access to services to support these vulnerable 
children to avoid serious risks in the future.
  I encourage my colleagues to continue working together in a 
bipartisan manner to address the needs of our foster care system. I 
also want to thank Karen Bass for raising awareness on the critical 
needs facing foster youth through the Congressional Caucus on Foster 
Youth. During this month and beyond, let us celebrate foster parents 
and caregivers and recommit to ensuring every child has a permanent, 
safe, and loving family.

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