Kentucky is limiting in-person child abuse investigations because of the coronavirus

The coronavirus pandemic has placed an added strain on Kentucky's overburdened child protection system even as Kentucky continues to lead the nation in its rate of child abuse and neglect.

Citing possible exposure to the virus, state child protection workers have been directed to limit contact with families they are investigating or overseeing at a time when Kentucky continues to have a record of nearly 10,000 children in foster care.

Gov. Andy Beshear said workers are to suspend monthly visits they make to check on children in foster care and limit in-person investigations of alleged abuse or neglect to "imminent risk or high risk-only circumstances."

"It's a step that we have to take," Beshear said at a Saturday news conference. "We are going to do our very best to make sure that we are there when those kids need us."

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Dr. Melissa Currie, a forensic pediatrician in Louisville, said Monday the decision is "understandable, but it's concerning." 

"We do know that anything that increases stress on families tends to increase abuse and this is certainly going to be a stressful time for families," said Currie, who is with Norton Children's Medical Group, an affiliate of the University of Louisville School of Medicine.

But even as state and federal officials urge everyone to limit contact with others, foster parents are being told they must continue to take children in their care to court-ordered visits with the biological parents, usually supervised by a social worker at a state office.

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A state supervisor's email Monday to workers in Jefferson County, referring to court-ordered visits between foster children and their families, said that "as of this time, we still have to honor visits until otherwise notified."

The Beshear administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the situation.

On Tuesday, Beshear at his daily news conference, repeated his advice for people to keep at least 6 feet away from one another in public settings.

"It is our civic duty for every Kentuckian to engage in social distancing," he said.

Two foster parents told The Courier Journal they were shocked to learn they had to keep taking the children to weekly visits with families, despite such concerns. Both asked not to be identified because of concerns about confidentiality of the foster care system and possible repercussions from the state.

"It just hasn't been addressed, and I think it's a huge risk," one foster parent said Tuesday. "We feel like our families are being placed at risk."

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Both foster parents cited having to shuttle children back and forth to visits in public office settings crowded with others, including the children's parents and a social worker supervising the visit.

"It's getting ridiculous," said the other foster parent who must take several children to weekly visits with a parent. "They need to cancel them. They're shutting down schools, they're shutting down day care centers, they're shutting down restaurants. Even the courts are shut down."

The foster parents said the directive also applies to foster children who get overnight or weekend visits with biological families and must be taken to the visits, picked up afterward and returned to their foster home, with the potential to expose others.

"You just don’t know what the kids are being exposed to," one of the foster parents said. 

Meanwhile, social workers who are required to have monthly "face-to-face visits" with children in foster care or at home under state supervision have been told they may check on the children by phone, through the FaceTime app, with texts or other electronic means, according to Monday's email.

In cases in which abuse or neglect is alleged but there does not appear to be a "high risk," the social worker is supposed to investigate but with precautions. The Cabinet for Health and Family Services has provided a "screening tool," or questionnaire, to determine whether someone at the home might present a risk, according to a copy obtained by The Courier Journal.

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It includes questions such as whether anyone in the household has traveled to countries affected by the coronavirus outbreak, has cared for anyone with the virus or has had symptoms including a high fever, sore throat or persistent cough.

If any of the answers are "yes," the workers are advised not to visit the home. Instead, they are advised to try to work out a "safety plan" for the child by telephone. If answers are "no," workers should visit the home, but the email advises them to keep at least 6 feet away from residents and avoid going inside.

In high-risk cases, workers should not call ahead and should visit the home, according to the email.

Beshear, at his news conference Saturday, acknowledged the changes are not ideal.

"Yes, it is going to present an extra risk," he said. "I want to be clear about that. I don't like having to do it."

Pam Darnall, president of Family & Children's Place, a local agency that evaluates cases of child abuse and offers counseling to children and adults, said she's especially concerned now that schools have closed temporarily and day care centers are to close at the end of this week.

"School is a safe place for kids," Darnall said. "Now all these kids are at home. Sometimes that’s good and sometimes that’s not great because those kids are sometimes hurt at home.

"It’s like that safety net gets smaller and smaller for the most vulnerable kids."

Darnall said her agency has suspended face-to-face visits with clients and also has stopped serving as a site for court-ordered visits between biological parents and children in foster care, a service it had provided for the state but stopped Monday out of concern over the virus.

"Our staff aren't doing that anymore. We had to halt that," she said. "I'm assuming those visits are being supervised by social workers."

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Darnall said Family & Children's Place is reaching out to clients by phone and looking for other ways to check on their well-being.

Meanwhile, family courts across the state that handle child abuse and neglect, as well as divorce, custody and domestic violence cases, have largely shut down under a recent directive from state Supreme Court Chief Justice John Minton.

Tara Hagerty, the chief Family Court judge in Jefferson County, said she is worried that current circumstances, including children being at home all day, could lead to more incidents of child abuse and neglect.

"We haven't experienced anything like this," Hagerty said. "But I am concerned because it’s a time of stress and uncertainty."

Family courts are still hearing cases involving child abuse in which the state is seeking immediate removal of a child for safety reasons. The courts also are open for domestic violence petitions and emergency orders, she said.

But hearings on nonemergency situations, such as divorce, adoptions and custody and property disputes, are being rescheduled until courts reopen, she said.

"Obviously, to you, it's your family and it's an emergency," Hagerty said. "But when we're working with these limitations, we hope everyone can be patient."

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Reach Deborah Yetter at dyetter@courier-journal.com or 502-582-4228. Find her on Twitter at @d_yetter. Support strong local journalism by subscribing today: www.courier-journal.com/subscribe.