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Milwaukee County health department asks committee to amend 2025 out‑of‑home care contracts for court‑ordered youth
Summary
Department of Health and Human Services officials told the committee the county must amend multiple CYFS contracts because children ordered to out‑of‑home placements require immediate placement and initial contracts were set at a temporary $99,000 level; amendments will “right‑size” funding for the remainder of 2025.
Kelly Pethke, administrator for Children, Youth and Family Services, told the Health Equity, Human Needs and Strategic Planning Committee that Department of Health and Human Services staff are asking the board for authorization to amend several 2025 fee‑for‑service contracts with out‑of‑home care providers who serve court‑ordered youth.
Pethke said the county executed short‑term contracts at $99,000 so staff could immediately place youth when ordered by the court. She said those initial agreements were intended as a stopgap while CYFS gathered data to “right‑size” each contract for the rest of 2025.
“The $99,000 was not necessarily because we expected to spend $99,000. It was because it was a minimum amount that we knew we would need that could be authorized immediately in what could be considered an emergency due to a court order,” Supervisor Alexander summarized aloud during committee discussion. Pethke confirmed, “That is exactly it.”
Pethke also explained that the county does not set daily rates for the residential treatment centers and group homes; those rates are set by the Wisconsin Department of Children and Families (DCF) and vary by facility. She said the proposed contract amendments reflect differences in placement counts and DCF‑set daily rates for each provider.
Deputy Director David Muhammad attended the presentation and remained available to answer questions. Committee members asked whether the amendments would be retroactive; Pethke said they were not retroactive at the time of the report but warned that after invoices for March and April are processed, some contracts will exceed the initial $99,000 threshold and require formal amendment.
No motion or vote was taken on the item during the meeting; it was presented to the committee as an informational item and referred also to the Finance Committee.
Why it matters: CYFS must comply with court orders placing youth in state‑licensed out‑of‑home facilities; the committee heard that the $99,000 initial amount allowed the county to execute placements immediately, and the requested amendments are intended to match actual use and DCF‑set rates for the remainder of the year.
