LANSING - In a statement delivered to legislators today, Department of Human Services (DHS) director Marianne Udow responded to a recent Office of Auditor General (OAG) audit of the Michigan foster care program by correcting misinformation and setting forth a list of actions already underway in her department to reform Michigan’s foster care program.

"Our first priority is to protect all of Michigan’s children," Udow said. "Although the audit report is misleading and incomplete, we are taking it seriously and taking steps to thoroughly evaluate the status of providers and the safety of children in our care."

Udow disputes information in the audit report that cites 321 foster care providers as having what the OAG calls "disqualifying or potentially disqualifying" convictions.

"It is critical to understand who these people are. Of the 321 caregivers mentioned in the report, nearly two-thirds are biological or adoptive parents – not foster parents," Udow said in her statement. "We have been working with these families, we have been involved in these children's lives, and we have been helping these parents improve so their families can be safely reunited."

"The auditor has identified some of the same areas we have been focusing on for the past two years," Udow continued. "After inheriting the problems described in the audit report, we have already made fundamental changes in the system and will continue to do so."

Among the efforts already underway to strengthen the system is an automated process to do periodic background checks and Web-based monitoring of foster care providers.

"At the same time, we are fundamentally reforming Michigan's child welfare system using proven tools that target prevention, early intervention, appropriate placement, family preservation, and permanence," Udow stated. "Our Family to Family initiative achieved positive outcomes for children in Wayne County this past year, and is now in place in 20 Michigan counties. The Family to Family approach has a national track record of positive results in many other states."

In her statement, Udow calls for the legislature to strengthen statutes and support the department with the resources necessary to carry them out.

"We are calling for a change to the licensing act (PA 116) to mandate periodic background checks. SB 615, SB 504 and HB 4936, now pending in the legislature, change the requirements for child day care providers. If these bills cannot be amended to include foster care providers, we will recommend additional legislation to do so," she said.

"In order to create lasting change, we must all follow through on a shared commitment and recognize that more resources are critical to strengthening the protection of children," Udow concluded. "Caseload ratios in Michigan range from 25:1 to 40:1, far higher than the optimal ratio recommended by the Child Welfare League of America. We believe the protection of children warrants special consideration in the debate over budget allocations. This is an investment that will pay great dividends for the state, for families, and most importantly, for children."