Ohio Foster Care Data
Ohio ranks #40 of 51 jurisdictions for reunification: 39.5% of FY2022 exits returned to a parent or primary caregiver, 5.7 points below the national rate.
- D
- Four-measure profile grade
- 14,946
- #5 caseload nationally
- 39.5%
- Reunification (#40)
- 16.0%
- Adoption (#49)
The verdict
Signature read: adoption at 16.0% (#49) is Ohio's thinnest named exit share in FY2022. Ohio held 14,946 children in foster care on September 30, FY2022 and is among the lowest reunification rates nationally (#40 of 51) at 39.5%, with a D four-measure profile grade that is not an overall quality verdict.
- #40
- reunification rank of 51 jurisdictions
- 39.5%
- FY2022 reunification rate
- #49
- adoption rank nationally
- 13.0 mo
- median length of stay
Ohio sits in the lower third of the FY2022 reunification distribution (39.5% of exits, #40 of 51). Median stay is short-tail at 13.0 months among exits. Profile grade D averages four within-release percentiles; it is not a federal quality verdict.
A within-release percentile composite of four AFCARS measures, not an overall quality verdict or a federal assessment. Reunification and adoption are each scored on their own percentile, never against each other.
Aging out of foster care vs. every US state
FY2022 AFCARS: youth who exit care at majority without a permanent family
14% 12th percentile lower than 12% of 51 US states
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more US states. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source ACF/AFCARS state tables · FY2022
AFCARS jurisdiction row
State TAR extract OH · Ohio D · #40 reunif
14,946 in care · 9,445 exits · FY2022
- REUN 39.5%
- ADOPT 16.0%
- AGE 14.1%
- LOS 13.0 mo
- RANK #40/51
- GRADE D
- CARE 14,946
- EXITS 9,445
- PHOTO New York
- BOOK FY2022 TAR
Nearest caseload peer: New York (812 children vs Ohio)
The 10 coded stamps above and the extract ID beside them come from the same Children's Bureau AFCARS FY2022 Title-IV-E/B TAR submission, standardized so every jurisdiction's row uses identical measure definitions. Read with this state →
Reunification neighbourhood
AFCARS annual change
What changed from FY2021 to FY2022
The latest comparable state count pair from the U.S. Children's Bureau AFCARS trend series. These are reported changes, not a quality rating or an explanation of why a count moved.
-
Children exiting care
10,324 9,445
Fell by 879 (−8.5%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Children entering care
10,505 9,701
Fell by 804 (−7.7%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Children served
25,773 24,391
Fell by 1,382 (−5.4%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
-
Children adopted
1,622 1,543
Fell by 79 (−4.9%) across the FY2021–FY2022 pair.
How Ohio's 9,445 FY2022 exits break down
Counts rounded from each published exit-share × 9,445 exits. Named routes do not cover every AFCARS discharge reason; the residual is other published exit routes (guardianship, transfer, and similar), not missing rows.
Two views of Ohio's reunification-light FY2022 exit mix
Named exit shares for this jurisdiction beside reunification vs the national rate. Competing shares of one exits denominator, not a scorecard.
Ohio exit routes
Reunification vs national
Same reunification rate as the bar chart; tick marks the national AFCARS rate as context only.
Nationwide peers with similarly short stays or matching adoption share
Two AFCARS peer sets for Ohio, nearest by metric distance rather than reunification-rank standings.
Similar median length of stay
Nearest jurisdictions by median months in care (13.0 mo here).
Similar adoption share of exits
Jurisdictions with a comparable adoption exit share (16.0% here).
Foster-family placement mix in Ohio
Caseload is large-system scale: 14,946 children in care on September 30 (#5 nationally). Lead setting: foster family home at 55.9%.
Ohio children returned to a parent or primary caregiver
Children exiting foster care via adoption in Ohio
Youth exiting foster care at age 18+ without permanency
Ohio's decade caseload trail (large-system AFCARS counts)
Signature read: adoption at 16.0% (#49) is Ohio's thinnest named exit share in FY2022. AFCARS count series from FY2013 to FY2022 for Ohio.
| Metric | FY2013 | FY2015 | FY2017 | FY2019 | FY2021 | FY2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children Served | 21,435 | 22,533 | 25,195 | 27,440 | 25,773 | 24,391 |
| In Care (Sep 30) | 12,223 | 13,205 | 14,961 | 16,387 | 15,449 | 14,946 |
| Entered Care | 9,875 | 10,360 | 11,845 | 12,410 | 10,505 | 9,701 |
| Exited Care | 9,212 | 9,328 | 10,234 | 11,053 | 10,324 | 9,445 |
| Waiting Adoption | 2,976 | 3,010 | 3,373 | 3,677 | 3,526 | 3,679 |
| Adopted | 1,244 | 1,334 | 1,538 | 1,665 | 1,622 | 1,543 |
Ohio FAQ - reunification-light jurisdiction
Signature read: adoption at 16.0% (#49) is Ohio's thinnest named exit share in FY2022. Median stay is short-tail at 13.0 months among exits.
How many children are in foster care in Ohio?
14,946 children were in foster care on September 30, 2022, in the FY2022 AFCARS state table.
What is Ohio's foster care grade?
A D, based on four equally weighted AFCARS measures. It is a descriptive profile, not a judgment of overall system quality.
What is the adoption rate in Ohio?
Ohio adopts out 16.0% of exits, #49 of 51 nationally.
How does Ohio compare to other states on aging out?
14.1% of youth age out without permanency, 4.9 points above the national rate. That is a lower rate than 12% of the 51 reporting states in FY2022 AFCARS.
Read our methodology - how Ohio's FY2022 AFCARS row is sourced, computed, and verified.
U.S. Children's Bureau AFCARS FY2022 jurisdiction report for Ohio (OH). ACF Trends in Foster Care and Adoption workbooks FY2013-FY2022; adoption share of exits stamp 16.0%.
Source: U.S. Children's Bureau (Administration for Children and Families) AFCARS workbooks and jurisdiction reports · FY2022 Ohio rates are exits shares from the jurisdiction report; in-care counts are the September 30 stock. Caseload is large-system scale: 14,946 children in care on September 30 (#5 nationally).