Department of Children's Services outlines budget for expanded treatment, case managers and intake centers

Department of Children Services Commissioner Margie Quinn told the Senate Health and Welfare Committee that DCS has shifted from crisis response to a strategy-driven model and asked lawmakers to fund changes to match the agency's current caseload and clinical needs.

The request presented to the committee covered several categories: recalculation of the residential custodial budget to reflect a higher-acuity population; expansion of assessment treatment home beds from 48 to 96; maintenance of recent provider rate increases; continued funding for specialized treatment foster care; private-provider case management to add 95 case managers in stressed regions; targeted Intercept (Youth Villages) expansion in 15 counties that produce half of the state's foster entries; and supports for youth aging out of care, including a continuation of LifeSet and extension of foster care case management.

Quinn said recent workforce and…