For over 20 years, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) has reported on youth in the foster care system who are placed in residential facilities, including concerns with the physical, emotional, and sexual abuse of these youth. In multiple reports, GAO has recommended that Health and Human Services (HHS) enhance the support it provides to states, which are primarily responsible for oversight of residential facilities. This testimony summarizes findings from prior GAO reports on: (1) youth placed in residential facilities, (2) challenges to preventing harm to these youth, and (3) state and federal oversight of residential facilities. This testimony is primarily based on prior GAO reports issued from 2008 to 2022. Each of GAO’s prior reports contain a detailed description of the methodology GAO used. Generally, for each report, GAO reviewed relevant documentation and information gathered via interviews or surveys of relevant stakeholders, including officials from state and local child welfare agencies and residential facility administrators.
