Neal and Davis Praise New HHS LGBTQ+ Foster Youth Guidance

Statement

Today, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA) and Worker and Family Support Subcommittee Chairman Danny K. Davis (D-IL) released the following statement applauding new Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) guidance regarding LGBTQ+ youth in the foster care system:

"LGBTQ+ youth are overrepresented in the foster care system, and today's guidance will ensure that this particularly vulnerable population is better protected and supported. We've seen how discriminatory practices can take place at the state level, most recently in Texas, with the attempted weaponization of child protective services against transgender youth and their families. We have consistently pushed HHS to ensure that child welfare services across the nation are safe and affirming. Thanks to Secretary Becerra's consistent leadership on this issue, the agency's latest guidance goes a long way toward addressing implicit bias and ensuring that federal funds serve the best interests of foster children and foster families, including those who are LGBTQ+. We thank the former foster youth who have helped us better understand their need for inclusive, affirming, and appropriate child welfare services. We also applaud the Biden Administration for listening to the voices of youth, and we look forward to continuing to partner with them, using all tools at our disposal."

In August of 2020, the Ways and Means Committee released a staff report entitled Children at Risk: The Trump Administration's Waiver of Foster Care Nondiscrimination Requirements, which found that the Trump Administration deliberately caused the HHS to fail its mandate to act in the best interest of abused and neglected children, resulting in harm to LGBTQ+ children and families. In the 117th Congress, Rep. Davis reintroduced anti-discrimination legislation originally put forward by the late Congressman John Lewis: the John Lewis Every Child Deserves a Family Act (H.R. 3488).

Source