HARTFORD, CT – The Senate on Wednesday debated an amendment to a bill that would change requirements for Department of Children and Families workers doing at-home visits for families with safety plans.
Senate Bill 126 would require caseworkers for the Department of Children and Families to conduct their home visits in-person if the department’s safety plan – which is a plan put in place by DCF in order to mitigate harmful behaviors or conditions in a child’s environment – shows that a parent or guardian in the home has a substance abuse issue.
Sen. Ceci Maher, D-Wilton, proposed an amendment which changes some of the language to allow for home visits to be done for any family that has a safety plan in place. The amendment also allows for visits to be conducted remotely, if the child is in isolation or quarantine.
“We wanted to make sure that children were going to be even more safe,” Maher said. “It is now any family that has a safety plan in place will be considered to be part of this.
The bill passed the chamber and was sent to the House with a vote 35-0.
The amendment passed with a vote of 27-8, but was met with some concerns from some Republican members of the chamber.
Sen. Lisa Seminara, R-Avon, said that she was concerned about families and children falling between the cracks and not getting the services they need.
“We got into this position that we were behind on home visits, and childrens welfare was compromised as a result of the home visits not being in person,” Seminara, who is a ranking member on the committee, said. “My concern with putting forth this amendment is that we are going to put ourselves back in that position.”
Maher said that in cases of illness or quarantine in a home DCF workers would be required to do their home visits remotely, as was done during the COVID pandemic.
Seminara said she was concerned that the amendment does not mention a follow-up appointment by a case worker after the period of quantanine has ended.
Maher that a follow-up is standard operating procedure for DCF.
Sen. Rob Sampson, R-Wolcott, said he was concerned about public health emergencies constricting the ability of parents, whose children are in the custody of DCF, to see their children.
Maher that is not the point of the amendment nor the bill.
“What we are trying to do with this bill is make sure that children are safer in the home, and that [it the] bill addresses that there are DCF workers that are following up on the safety plan, except in the case of quarantine,” the senator said.
She said that the amendment to the legislation only applies if the child that is in DCF custody is under quarantine. If the child is not, then they could meet with a parent or guardian with DCF present.
The Office of the Child Advocate (OCA) testified in favor of the bill in February, with Sarah Eagan, State Child Advocate, saying that in-home visit practices have been “inconsistent.”
Spurred by the case of Marcelo Meadows – a 10-month old from New Haven who died last year from ingesting a combination of opioids – OCA began investigating home visit practices conducted by DCF case workers, and said that it has some concerns.
“Agency data shows persistent concerns in critical practice areas such as staff contact with children and case participants, case supervision, and the monitoring of Safety Plans, with a marked decline in performance during the last two years,” her testimony read.
