The relationship between child disability and living arrangement in child welfare

The influence of disabilities on placement outcomes was examined for 277 children who were removed from their biological parents due to substantiated maltreatment. Results indicated that children with a disability were less likely to reunify and more likely to reside in nonkin foster care two years later than typical children. Children with cognitive, emotional /behavioral, and physical disabilities were over four times more likely to be permanently living in nonkin foster care than to be reunified.