US: With a Focus on Prevention and Kinship Care, Number of Children Entering Foster Care Decreases for the Fourth Consecutive Year (Press release)
U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Administration for Children & Families – November 04, 2022
National foster care and adoption data released today show the number of children entering foster care has decreased for the fourth consecutive year, and the number of children adopted from foster care decreased for the second consecutive year. We continue to encourage safe family reunification, with over half the children who exit foster care being placed with family members. The data, compiled and published by the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is from the annual Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) (PDF). The new report indicates the number of children in foster care decreased to an estimated 391,000 at the end of Fiscal Year 2021, from 407,000 reported at the end of FY 2020. The number of adoptions with U.S. child welfare involvement decreased to 52,400 compared to 2020’s 57,900.
Also: The AFCARS Report: Preliminary FY¹ 2021 Estimates as of June 28, 2022 – No. 29: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cb/afcars-report-29.pdf
https://www.acf.hhs.gov/media/press/2022/focus-prevention-and-kinship-care-number-children-entering-foster-care-decreases