The opioid crisis in America is well documented by the media. Current statistics from The National Institute on Drug Abuse indicates every day about 130 people in the US die from an opioid overdose. About 1.7 million people suffer from substance abuse disorders related to opioids and over 600,000 suffer from heroin addictions. This problem has been spiraling since the 1990s when pharmaceutical companies told the medical community that patients would not become addicted to opioid prescriptions leading to a huge increase in the rates of prescription. These medications were in fact addictive which led to widespread misuse and addiction across America, and opioid overdose rates skyrocketed.

With numbers like these, it is obvious this issue has a large impact on many aspects of society. Only some of these issues have started to be addressed, and one impact which has often been overlooked is the impact of this crisis on the foster care system. The increase of children in the system stems from more children coming from homes where they were neglected due to parental drug abuse. According to Opioid Help, 32% of the increase of children in the system is directly due to the surge in opioid use in America, and the side effects that come from parents who are using. Opioid Help indicates around 75% of the children in local foster care come from homes where parental opioid use took place.

The magnitude of the connection between opioid use and the foster care crisis can be seen in many of the states with high rates of opioid use and the subsequent foster care impact. A good example of the state level impact can be seen in Tennessee, a state with one of the highest rates of parental opioid use in America. They recently reported a 10% increase in children in foster care. Similarly, in states like Maryland the rate of opioid- related deaths quadrupled in six years and subsequently overwhelmed their foster care system.

When a parent becomes addicted to opioids multiple different consequences can lead to their child’s removal from their home. Many times, parents are prescribed these drugs for something very simple, but will very quickly become captured by the incredibly addictive substances and are unable to escape the grasp the drugs have on them. In many cases opioid pills become “too weak” and parents will turn to stronger substances like heroin. The chemicals in opioids have effects on parents physical and mental state, often making them unable to take care of their children. Opioids lead to increases in neglect and family conflict as parents are unable to take care of daily responsibilities. Substance abuse cases in the foster care system often correlate with some of the most severe cases of abuse and neglect, according to Children’s Rights, and often have some of the youngest victims.

It should be noted some significant steps have been taken by states to address the opioid-foster care link. Kentucky pioneered a program in 2007 called Sobriety Treatment and Recovery Teams or “START” which crated an approach for at-risk parents that allows home visits, childcare vouchers and mentorship for people in recovery. It is an expensive program to run, but it is believed to save money on other expenditures related to an addiction that is not treated. Under the model when a child is learned to be at risk and the parent is identified to have a substance abuse disorder, the parent is sent into the treatment program and given a team that reaches across various agencies including children’s aid. The START program has been a model for many programs in other states. While this program has made huge strides in protecting children with addicted parents and attempts to reduce the strain on foster care, there is much more that needs to be done. The program is expensive, and in many ways not developed enough or reaching enough places to have a significant impact on relieving the system. A more intense national approach like START would be the most effective approach to begin to relieve the foster care system.