California foster families at risk as non-profit agencies face losing critical insurance coverage [Video]

All too often, there are reports on children in the foster care system are abused, or worse. But there are success stories as well, many of them thanks to non-profit agencies that find good homes for kids.

But those agencies are facing a crisis that could force them to shut down.

There are nearly 45,000 children in the California foster care system, the vast majority have been separated from their parents due to neglect or abuse. Roughly 9,700 of those kids are placed in resource family homes supported by nonprofit foster family agencies (FFAs) like Five Acres in Altadena.

“FFAs are a critical component in the continuum of care in the child welfare system. They do the work that the counties are simply not set up to do,” explained Jodi Kurata, the CEO of the Association of Community Human Service Agencies.

Working with foster children exposes FFAs to liability risks that requires insurance coverage.

Currently, a single insurer provides …