Some Maryland lawmakers balked at a proposal to eliminate state investigations for less serious child-neglect and -abuse reports ? a proposal supporters said would keep many children from moving unnecessarily to foster homes.
Gov. Martin O?Malley?s administration is proposing “alternative” responses to low-risk child-abuse and -neglect reports that involve intervention rather than investigating and placing children in foster care. But days after a report said Baltimore mother Venice Harris twice asked social services for help before giving her 2-year-old daughter a lethal dose of methadone in June, some lawmakers said investigating every complaint ? serious or not ? may not be a bad idea.
“I am always concerned about the unintended consequence,” Del. Luiz Simmons, a Montgomery County Democrat, said during a committee hearing Thursday. “Especially after using the process we have in place, when judgments were made and discretion was exercised, and we still had the outcome that we did.”
Alternative responses for complaints such as children living in unclean homes would involve services the state already provides, said Brenda Donald, secretary of the Department of Human Resources, which oversees child-protective services statewide.
Many reports of abuse and neglect can be solved with case managers and referrals to substance-abuse, health and housing programs, she said.
Investigations would still be required for reports of child-sex abuse, unattended children under the age of 2, physical punishment against a child under the age of 1, abuse resulting in death or serious physical or mental injury, or involving a person who was the subject of at least three other reports.
Currently, complaints such as children coming to school unkempt are handled the same as complaints of physical abuse, said Cathy Mols, the state?s director of social services. Families are more willing to receive help, she said, if they are approached in a helpful manner, rather than accusatory.
Some lawmakers agreed.
“This is a triage of abuse and neglect,” said Del. Susan McComas, a Harford County Republican. “Quite honestly, we are endangering our children more under the current system because we don?t have the option of doing more early on.”
The proposal is one of several relevant to child welfare before the General Assembly, including one that criminalizes child neglect.
Last week, O?Malley said the state has lost 1,000 foster homes since 2003 and launched a new recruitment campaign.
