Effective August 31, 2020, In-Person Visits Between Parents and their Children in Philadelphia DHS Custody are RESTARTED
What Parents Need to Know
- All visits may now be in person. If you have overnight visits, those will be daytime visits for now.
- Your current court order will tell you how often you can visit, and whether your visit is supervised or not.
- Your CUA worker should contact you soon to make an updated visitation plan. You may have a new day or time for visits, but your visits should happen as often as they were allowed on the last court order.
- You and your child will be pre-screened for symptoms of COVID-19 before the visit to make sure the visit can safely occur. If there is a problem with the pre-screen (for instance, if you are positive for COVID), your visits will be virtual until you can pass the pre-screen.
Frequently Asked Questions
What if I don’t feel safe attending in-person visits, do I still have to go?
No. If you prefer, you can ask that visits stay virtual for now.
The foster parent doesn’t want in-person visits to occur, can I still have visits?
Yes. Parents and children can opt out of in-person visits, but foster parents and/or CUA workers cannot stop your right to in-person visits without a court order.
The last court order says that the foster parent should supervise, but they don’t want to. What can I do?
If the foster parent does not want to supervise your visit, your visit will be supervised by the CUA.
My court order says I get two visits per week, but I’m only being offered one in-person visit per month. Is that allowed?
No. You must be offered as many visits as the court order requires.
Are all children eligible for in-person visits?
Yes, every child in DHS custody with a case plan goal of reunification is eligible for in-person parent/child visits, unless the court order says otherwise.
I want in-person visits, but they are not being provided. What should I do?
You can call your CUA worker and CUA supervisor. You can also call the DHS Commissioner’s Action Response Office at 215-683-6000 and/or your attorney.
