The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) just released a report on the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA), Child Welfare: HHS Should Clarify Guidance on State Spending for Congregate Care . The report examines limits on Title IV‑E funding for congregate care, state experiences, and HHS oversight, ultimately calling on HHS to clarify spending guidance for “at-risk” youth while highlighting gaps in care caused by rapid deinstitutionalization. However, its findi

Human services agencies are under unprecedented pressure. Tight federal deadlines, expanded work requirements, and stricter compliance rules are stretching staff and systems to the limit. At the same time, Congress and federal agencies are racing to set rules for AI, from safety standards to ethical use. For nonprofits, local governments, and advocates, understanding AI isn’t optional anymore; it’s essential for managing workloads, meeting compliance requirements, and shaping

On January 6, 2026, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced a dramatic freeze on roughly $10 billion in federal child care and family assistance grants for five states — California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York — over alleged fraud and misuse of taxpayer dollars in state-administered programs. HHS’s Administration for Children and Families (ACF) notified the governors of the five states that access to key funding streams is now restricte

If you’ve spent any time working in child welfare, behavioral health, or foster care policy, you’ve probably heard the phrase “unintended consequences.” Few issues illustrate that better than the quiet conflict between two federal laws that are both supposed to help children in foster care—but, in practice, are working against each other. At the center of the problem is a long-standing Medicaid rule called the Institution for Mental Diseases (IMD) exclusion and how it appli