Explaining variations in state foster care maintenance rates and the implications for implementing new evidence-based programs

U.S. Child Welfare systems are involved in the lives of millions of children, and total spending exceeds $26billion annually. Out-of-home foster care is a critical and expensive Child Welfare service, a major component of which is the maintenance rate paid to support housing and caring for a foster child. Maintenance rates vary widely across states and over time, but reasons for this variation are not well understood. As evidence-based programs are disseminated to state Child Welfare systems, it is important to understand what may be the important drivers in the uptake of these practices including state spending on core system areas.