What overturning Roe v. Wade means for the United States foster care system
As the United States political environment becomes more polarized surrounding conversations on abortion, contraceptive use, and other maternal health issues, one thing remains the same, the U.S. foster care system.
Research from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that the number of children entering foster care has been growing for the past 5 years. States are also experiencing a shortage of foster parents and are struggling to find suitable homes for thousands of children within the system.
According to the AFCARS Report in 2017, approximately 423,997 children were in the foster care system. Roughly half of the foster youth nationwide never graduate high school and every one in five will enter the homeless population. The cracks within the United States foster care system will continue to grow if these trends are not addressed and repaired.
In spite of the little funding that the system is receiving, there is another issue at hand. Roe v. Wade.
Talks of overturning the landmark Roe v. Wade (1973) decision have been circulating in the political sphere, and the internet, for months. If the decision to overturn the ruling passes, women in the US could lose access to critical maternal care and safe abortions. Without these, we will undoubtedly see the rate of children entering the foster care system increase.
Children are placed in the foster care system for a variety of reasons. If the government is concerned for the well-being and health of an unborn child, what about the hundreds of thousands of children in the foster care system around us that go unnoticed every year?
