Columbia County Department of Health & Human Services needs people to provide foster care for children from birth to 18 years. A person licensed to operate a foster home must be a responsible, mature individual who is fit and qualified, who doesn't abuse alcohol or drugs or have a history of statutory conviction or administrative rule violation that substantially relates to the care of foster children or operating a foster home.
Individuals licensed to be foster parents must exercise sound judgement and display the capacity to successfully nurture foster children.
Foster parents will usually have some contact with their foster child's birth parents.
A foster child's length of stay in a foster home ranges from one day to two years. Children placed in a foster home may have learning disabilities or emotional/behavioral challenges. Bed wetting and head lice are not unusual.
Foster parents are responsible for enrolling their foster child in school, scheduling and transporting their foster child to medical or therapy appointments, and attending meetings related to the child's status and progress.
All foster children are covered by Medical Assistance. Foster parents receive standardized monthly payments to cover the cost of caring for the child. A foster parent who has particularly difficult care for a child may receive a supplement in addition to the basic rate.