ODHS publishes first Child Welfare report under Wyatt B. v. Kotek, Names benchmarks, gaps and actions

The Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) today released its first semi-annual report under the Wyatt B. v. Kotek Collaborative Agreement. It establishes public baselines for Oregon's child welfare system, names current gaps and documents progress made to date toward child and family well-being.

The baseline report provides families, advocates, legislators and partners with information about how ODHS' progress will be tracked over time. It includes actions already underway to address areas where improvement is needed.

"The safety of children in care is our highest priority," said Interim Child Welfare Director Rolanda Garcia. "We are taking clear, immediate steps to better protect children and support the families who care for them."

The 2024 agreement between the state and plaintiffs A Better Childhood and Disability Rights Oregon identified key child welfare practice areas for improvement. The measures were established through a comprehensive child welfare system assessment by a court-appointed Neutral with national child welfare expertise.

Oregon is making real progress in key areas

The report highlights key improvements in outcomes for children and families. Behind each of these numbers is a family whose life went differently because the system worked:

• Fewer children are returning to foster care after reunification, with Oregon's rate at 5.7%, which is almost meeting the 5.6% target.
• More families are receiving timely case plans. The case plan is a family's roadmap when working with the child welfare system. It tells them what they need to do, what help they will receive, and what the timeline looks like. The share of families receiving on-time plans has more than doubled since 2021, from 39.5% to 81%.
• More children are staying connected to family. Placement with relatives such as grandparents, aunts and uncles has nearly doubled since 2022, increasing from 18.8% to 36.1%
• Oregon is among only a handful of states meeting or exceeding all three federal standards for moving children from foster care to permanent families.

The report is also direct about where Oregon has more work to do and names actions underway to close the gaps.

Reducing maltreatment of children in foster care

Oregon's maltreatment in care (MIC) rate for federal fiscal year 2025 was 24.7 incidents per 100,000 care days, compared to the target rate of 9.07. Every incident represents a child who deserved better. ODHS commissioned an independent statewide safety assessment and built a Safety Action Plan around its findings to drive that number down. The plan is now operational and includes:

• Monthly safety plan reviews for every child as well as mandatory monthly contacts between caseworkers and children.
• Adoption of updated tools that help workers assess and document safety decisions consistently.
• Expanded supports for resource families to reduce stress and improve placement stability.

The target rate of 9.07 is a federal standard based on an average of performance across all states. Several factors drive Oregon's MIC rate higher than other states' rates. A 2024 analysis by the Bipartisan Policy Center found that Oregon is the only state in the country that investigates reports involving individuals who have no caregiving responsibility for the child-a category other states refer to law enforcement. Oregon also applies broader definitions of maltreatment and uses a lower evidentiary threshold than other states. If Oregon calculated its rate similar to other states, its MIC baseline would be substantially closer to the 9.07 target. Because of the differences in how Oregon calculates its rate, comparing Oregon's MIC rate to those of other states provides limited insight into ODHS' policies and practices aimed at keeping children safe while in care.

Improving timely health assessments for children

When a child enters foster care, they are to receive a nursing assessment within 10 days and a medical assessment within 60 days. These assessments identify children's health needs and connect them to timely treatment and services. Currently, 75% of children receive timely medical assessments and 80.6% receive timely nursing assessments-both short of the 90% goal. The primary cause is that placement information is not always entered into the data system the day a child enters care, which can delay the entire assessment and referral chain. Oregon has put in place operational changes to address this, including a mandatory real-time documentation requirement, a new referral desk that routes placements to nursing staff immediately, and daily notifications to health plan partners so appointments are scheduled without delay. ODHS also is working with the Oregon Health Authority to improve education and technical assistance for coordinated care organizations (CCOs) and providers, who play an important role in ensuring children in foster care have receive timely physical, mental and dental health assessments.

ODHS is committed to transparency and accountability

Publishing this report twice a year ensures that families, advocates, and legislators can see both where the system is performing and where it must improve.

"Child welfare work happens during some of the hardest moments in a family's life, and the people we serve deserve a system that is transparent about where it stands and committed to improvement," Director Garcia said. "This report is an important part of how we demonstrate that commitment. We have more to do, and we will keep sharing our progress publicly as we work to get this right for every child in our care."

Resources:

May 2026 ODHS Child Welfare Progress Report

May 2026 ODHS Child Welfare Progress Report Executive Summary

April 2026 Press release on Child and Family Services Review (CFSR)

CFSR Oregon Final Report