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Maria became a foster mom to give what she once needed
Maria is an Idaho foster mom whose decision to foster didn’t come from a place of perfection. It came from experience, reflection, and growth.As she grew past her challenging childhood, the idea that any child could be without safety, stability, or a place to belong stopped being abstract; it became personal. That quiet conviction is what led her to open her home as a foster parent, determined to be the kind of adult she once needed
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The Department of Health and Welfare is committed to optimizing health and preventing crises. We believe that all Idahoans should be as healthy and self-sufficient as possible. We believe it so much that it’s the third goal in our Strategic Plan.
There are several ways to
The top three leading causes of death in Idaho in 2021 were diseases of the heart, cancer, and COVID-19. Almost 9,000 Idahoans died of those causes out of 18,334 total deaths. The next three categories--accidents, respiratory diseases, and Alzheimer's disease--resulted in
One child abused is one child too many.
All children deserve to feel safe in their homes, with their families.
Too often, that is not the case. The Department of Health and Welfare receives nearly 23,000 reports of child abuse, neglect, and abandonment each year in Idaho.
With about 80 million dogs living in U.S. households, there are unfortunately about 4.5 million dog bites each year, with many dog bite victims being children.
In Idaho, dog bites are increasing, and visits to Idaho emergency departments by children for dog bite injuries are
Can you imagine a place that offers services to stabilize people in a behavioral health crisis as well as treatment for those with serious and complex mental illnesses and substance use disorders? A place that serves everyone -- regardless of age, where they live, or their
A total of 153,837 Idaho residents are in Medicaid Protection, which means they couldn’t be removed from Medicaid during the pandemic unless they died, moved out of state, or asked to be removed based on federal law. Since Congress removed that protection, DHW has been working
In his 2022 budget, Idaho Gov. Brad Little included $15 million to establish facilities called psychiatric residential treatment facilities (PRTFs). They provide children with inpatient psychiatric services that are not offered at Idaho’s existing facilities.
In December, the
The Idaho State Behavioral Health Planning Council (BHPC) has shared State of Mind 2022, its annual report, with the Governor’s Office, the Idaho Legislature, and the Idaho Judiciary. The report evaluates the value of behavioral health services for adults and children provided
Most poisoning emergencies are unexpected and happen quickly in our homes. A majority of non-fatal poisonings involve children younger than 6. For adults, poisoning is the number one cause of injury death in the United States. This week is National Poison Prevention Week, so it’
DHW is dedicated to making sure children who have experienced abuse or neglect have safe, permanent homes. We are also focused on improving the behavioral health system for Idaho’s young people and the crisis care system for adults with developmental disabilities.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, federal regulators allowed some flexibility in who could be defined as a Personal Care Services (PCS) caregiver. DHW received approval to allow agencies to hire parents of minor children and spouses as paid caregivers. The flexibility, however, was