End of Roe v. Wade may overwhelm U.S. foster care systems: Axios

NEW YORK, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Underfunded and overstressed U.S. foster care systems are bracing for new pressures if the overturning of Roe v. Wade sends more children their way, reported major news portal Axios on Tuesday.

About 424,000 children in foster care on any given day already face shortages of placements, low high school graduation rates, and disproportionately high rates of incarceration and homelessness, according to the report.

"Without new funding and accountability, these problems may only get worse," it noted.

Child welfare advocates say they're concerned about a growing foster care-to-prison pipeline. One survey of foster care alumni showed that, by their 25th birthdays, 81 percent of males had been arrested and one in three incarcerated.

The average placement of children in state care is longer than a year and a half, and 5 percent of children in foster care are there for five or more years, according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

The U.S. Supreme Court on June 24 overturned Roe v. Wade, a landmark decision that established a constitutional right to abortion in the nation nearly 50 years ago.