HATTIESBURG, Miss. ( WHLT ) – Officials with the Mississippi Department of Child Protective Services (CPS) said they’re in urgent need of more foster parents.

According to CPS, there are around 4,000 in state custody, but there are only 2,000 licenses foster homes in Mississippi.

Roy Logan, a foster home recruiter, said the biggest challenge is finding more foster families who are willing to take in siblings and older children and teens. Mississippi is also in need of specialized foster care parents for children with special needs.

The current shortage of foster homes has caused CPS to place children in hotels until they can find a home.

CPS officials said families do get to decide whether a child would be a good fit for their home.

“Especially with Roe v. Wade being overturned, we’re going to see a lot more children that are in need of our services and need of being put in placement. And so, we need to make sure that we have that safety net in place to be able to handle the children. If we can just get people to understand they’re in control, they can say, ‘No.’ They can say, ‘Yes.’ You know, statistically, there are 400,000 children in foster care nationwide. That’s all children,” said Logan.

“Every family may not feel like they can actually foster, but there’s something every family can do to help the foster care system, whether it is supporting other foster care families, whether it is stepping up and taking in one, or five children, there’s a need. There’s such a big need. And if everybody did their part, Mississippi wouldn’t be in the state it is and needing the families,” said Hannah Walley, a foster parent.

Foster parents will receive a monthly stipend to cover the cost of care for the child, as well as Medicaid for their medical needs. Click here for more information.

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