NPR provides an update about the progress that has been made nationwide to ensure that SSI benefits, intended for eligible children who are in foster care, are not seized by the state.

A 2021 “NPR/Marshall Project investigation found that in at least 49 states and the District of Columbia,” when children enter foster care, welfare agencies look for which children receive or are eligible to receive SSI benefits. The state agencies then routinely seize the SSI benefits, frequently without telling the child or family, as claimed reimbursement for the costs of foster care.

However, as the report revealed, “governments already have an obligation to pay the costs of foster care under state and federal laws. The result is that only impoverished kids, who receive Social Security benefits because they’re orphans or because they’re disabled or their parents are disabled, get a bill for their own foster care” while other children do not.

Because of this investigation, “15 states and cities have taken steps to preserve the money of foster youth. Several other state legislatures are considering similar laws.” However, as the article details, there is still work to be done. Last month, SSA issued guidance to state and tribal foster care agencies regarding the representative payee program, but they stopped short of banning the use of SSI funds for foster care.

NOSSCR always advocates for the protection of our most vulnerable claimants and encourages you to reach out to your state and federal elected representatives to encourage them to enact meaningful change to protect SSI-eligible children in the foster care system.