‘OPB Politics Now’: Oregon’s struggles with foster care continue

For years now, the state of Oregon has struggled to safely, consistently house the foster children in its care.

State workers put those kids in hotel rooms when no foster parents could be found. More recently, they sent Oregon’s most vulnerable children to out-of-state facilities with concerning track records.

And last year, state officials tapped a relatively untested and unlicensed Oregon nonprofit that cares for children in short-term rental housing — and made a lot of money doing so.

That arrangement ended abruptly soon after OPB began asking questions.

On this week’s show, reporters Lauren Dake and Dirk VanderHart recount the state’s continuing, long-term struggles to care for its most vulnerable children.