Federal Watchdog Finds Arkansas Failed to Meet Requirements for Screening and Investigating Child Abuse Reports

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General has released an audit finding that Arkansas failed to comply with requirements governing how reports of child abuse and neglect are handled, according to the report published on the watchdog's website this month.

Per the OIG's published findings, the state fell short on the immediate screening of incoming reports, on conducting required risk and safety assessments, and on meeting investigation requirements for responding to those reports — the front-end steps that determine whether a child at risk is seen quickly by caseworkers.

Audits of this kind evaluate a state child welfare agency's compliance with federal and state rules and typically include recommendations to the agency; the specific findings, scope and any state response are set out in the OIG report itself.

The full report is available at the link above and is the sole source for this summary.