Early Findings on Extended Foster Care and Legal Permanency

As more states have instituted extended foster care, allowing youth to remain in the care system after age 18, some concern has been raised about negative effects on family reunification, guardianship, and adoption. Could extended foster care lead to less urgency regarding legal permanency or increase reluctance to adopt or become guardians of older adolescents if it means they will lose their benefits? This study explored extended foster care and how older foster youth leave the care system in California. The analysis indicates that although fewer adolescents exited care before age 18 after the extended care policy was established, this phenomenon is due to an increased likelihood that they will remain in care rather than pursue emancipation, run away, or exit from care in other potentially negative ways.