Ombudsman, Cabinet and providers outline scope of children placed in DCBS offices and gaps in placements

A preliminary assessment by the Office of the Ombudsman and testimony from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services (CHFS) and residential providers described ongoing use of DCBS office space as unlicensed, nontraditional placements for children when other placements are unavailable.

The ombudsman's preliminary review of a mid‑June through October period identified 49 children who were placed in office buildings during that interval. "They looked at 49 kids that were placed in in office buildings during that time," Brian Morrow, division director for citizen services and policy integrity in the ombudsman office, told the committee. Morrow said 10% of those 49 children had no documentation of behavioral or disability diagnoses, 33% (16 children) were removed directly from their homes, and the report listed ages ranging down to infants of 1, 2 and 3 years. For that sample period Morrow said the average age was about 13, and he said the longest documented stay in the ombudsman preliminary tally was 35 nights.

CHFS presented separate operational data covering a tracked time period that showed somewhat different summary statistics: the cabinet's…