• Foster care provides a safe, stable place for children with trouble at home.sad boy image by saied shahinkiya from Fotolia.com
  
  Foster parents play an integral role in helping children in difficult situations to have a safe, stable environment to live in while their family issues are resolved or until an adoptive family can be located. According to statistics gathered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, more than 460,000 children in the U.S. live in foster care each year. The average stay in foster care is two years and three months. Foster care programs and families can find additional financial support from government grants.
  
  

Title IV

• Under the Title IV program, the Department of Health and Human Services distributes grant money to state agencies and tribal organizations. The money must go toward providing stable out-of-home care to children who cannot remain at home. The funds primarily help with the costs of foster care, such as administration and training individuals working in foster care programs, including foster parents. Funds cannot be used to provide counseling or treatment to children, families or foster families.
  
  

Abandoned Infants

• The Department of Health and Human Services also provides grant money each year to states, tribes, local governments and nonprofit organizations that work with infants who have been abandoned and exposed to drug use or HIV. In part, these funds provide foster care for such infants. Foster families can use the grant for monetary assistance, training and ongoing support from health and social services workers, as well as for infants' medical needs while in foster care.
  
  

Independent Living

• The Chafee Foster Care Independent Living grant is also administered by the Department of Health and Human Services. This grant goes to state and tribal governments. The money is designated to support Native American youths who are in foster care and will likely remain there until they are adults. The grant money is used on programs to help these young adults make a smooth transition from foster care to independent living.
  
  

Child Welfare State Grants

• The Department of Health and Human Services distributes the Stephanie Tubbs Jones Child Welfare Services grant to state governments for promotion of local programs that support healthy families. Part of the funding goes to foster families who enter into long-term relationships with foster children, so that they can offer a safe, permanent solution for children in difficult domestic situations.