Ohio leads the nation in opiate overdose deaths, with an average of eight people dying each day last year. And thousands more are addicted, and in many cases, those addicts have families. On this week's , two children services directors share stories from the front lines of this crisis.
In the last seven years, the number of children taken into custody by children services agencies in Ohio soared by nearly 20 percent, from just under 12,000 kids in 2009 to nearly 14,000 kids in 2015. Parental drug use was involved with half of children taken into custody last year. Robin Reese heads Lucas County Children Services in Toledo, and said kids are staying in the system longer than ever. 鈥淚 have been in this business for 33 years,鈥� she said. 鈥淎nd I鈥檝e never seen any addiction 鈥� and we鈥檝e gone through many of them 鈥� where parents lose, they just lose not the ability but the will to want to get their kids back. They鈥檙e driven by trying to get the drug.鈥�
Dr. Lorra Fuller heads Scioto County Children Services 鈥� at the epicenter of the state鈥檚 opioid epidemic. Her agency took in twice as many drug exposed infants last year than the previous year. 鈥淭hat means that these babies are staying in care longer, have greater needs, and it鈥檚 difficult to find placement for these babies,鈥� Fuller said. 鈥淲e rely on relatives a lot, which is kinship placement, but we also rely on our foster parents.鈥�
Fuller says the effects of drug exposure on babies can be long-lasting, but they鈥檙e mostly physical. Older kids who鈥檝e lived through their parents鈥� drug addiction or seen them overdose and die remember 鈥� and they鈥檙e traumatized, angry and often need mental health treatment. Reese says sometimes they鈥檝e been trained to administer overdose antidotes such as Narcan to their parents, and are taking on very adult roles in their homes. 鈥淲e鈥檙e seeing more kids that are 鈥榩arentified鈥�. They鈥檙e caring for their sisters and brothers. And not having enough resources and caregivers 鈥� you don鈥檛 want to have split those kids up,鈥� Reese said. 鈥淏ut they鈥檙e coming in so fast, by the time we get folks through the certification process, the ink is barely dry before we鈥檙e calling them.鈥�
And the shattering impact of the crisis hits children services workers too 鈥� they鈥檙e often the first responders on these scenes, and many don鈥檛 stay on the job long, because of the low pay and the horrors that they see. Fuller talks of a worker who鈥檚 haunted by a man who beat his toddler son till his wife agreed to get him more drugs. Reese remembers a story from Christmastime. 鈥淲e were working on a reunification and one of the families, the mother overdosed and died. And her kids were having extended visits with her,鈥� Reese said. 鈥淚 can鈥檛 even explain to you how traumatized the staff were to have to deliver that message to the kids when they thought they were going to be home for the holidays.鈥�
At the same time the crisis has been escalating, state funding has been falling. The Public Children Services Association of Ohio reports state funding has plummeted by $93 million since 2009 鈥� that鈥檚 17%. And that group says the state is dead last in the nation. Fuller said she鈥檚 worried. 鈥淯nless they do something, it鈥檚 only going to get worse. These children are going to be the future of Ohio,鈥� Fuller said. 鈥淭hese children are being traumatized, and if we are not there to be able to provide the care that they need, and care in general encompassing everything 鈥� mental health needs, just their social needs in general 鈥� if we鈥檙e not there and we鈥檙e not there to do that, what is going to be the future of Ohio?鈥�
Reese said all the talk around this crisis of treatment for addicts, punishment for dealers and prevention for those who haven鈥檛 tried drugs has left these kids out. 鈥淐hildren are the silent victims. People focus in on making the adults healthy, and they don鈥檛 really look at the child part.鈥�
About half of children services agencies are also supported by levies at the local level, and those which aren鈥檛 have to rely on counties to provide more funds. The agencies say in the upcoming budget 鈥� which Gov. John Kasich has warned will be tough 鈥� they鈥檙e hoping to be restored to funding levels from seven years ago, when the caseloads started to rise dramatically.
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