ID :
207743
Sat, 09/17/2011 - 18:46
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/207743
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More relatives caring for quake orphans apply for gov't benefits
TOKYO, Sept. 17 Kyodo -
More than half of the families who have taken charge of the over 230 children orphaned by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami have applied for government benefits under the kinship foster care program, according to a survey by the welfare ministry.
The guardians of 131 orphans aged 18 or under had been granted such benefits under the Child Welfare Law as of Saturday, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
The law stipulates that a kinship foster parent, a guardian within the third degree of kinship of the orphaned child, as well as unrelated foster parents, can receive monthly living expenses ranging from 47,680 yen to 54,980 yen according to the child's age, as well as education expenses.
Guardians who are not within the third degree of kinship of 10 orphaned children were also certified as ordinary foster parents and received the benefits, the ministry added.
The number of orphans in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima, the most severely hit prefectures, totaled 236 as of Saturday. Three of them entered a home for children but the rest of them were fostered out to private households, many to those of their relatives.
The number of applicants for the benefits initially stayed low because of a lack of publicity, standing at only two in May, the ministry said, adding it is now gearing up efforts to inform potential applicants of the benefits.
Furthermore, some relatives of orphans were reluctant to apply for emotional reasons if the parents were still classified as missing in the disaster, the ministry said.
But with six months now having passed since the disaster, many of those relatives may be starting to put their lives back in order, accepting the reality of the situation and applying for the benefits, a ministry official said.
While becoming an ordinary foster parent requires the parent to be financially stable and receive prior training, there is no requirement to becoming a kinship foster parent, as priority is placed on the importance of child-rearing by a relative, according to the ministry.
More than half of the families who have taken charge of the over 230 children orphaned by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami have applied for government benefits under the kinship foster care program, according to a survey by the welfare ministry.
The guardians of 131 orphans aged 18 or under had been granted such benefits under the Child Welfare Law as of Saturday, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
The law stipulates that a kinship foster parent, a guardian within the third degree of kinship of the orphaned child, as well as unrelated foster parents, can receive monthly living expenses ranging from 47,680 yen to 54,980 yen according to the child's age, as well as education expenses.
Guardians who are not within the third degree of kinship of 10 orphaned children were also certified as ordinary foster parents and received the benefits, the ministry added.
The number of orphans in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima, the most severely hit prefectures, totaled 236 as of Saturday. Three of them entered a home for children but the rest of them were fostered out to private households, many to those of their relatives.
The number of applicants for the benefits initially stayed low because of a lack of publicity, standing at only two in May, the ministry said, adding it is now gearing up efforts to inform potential applicants of the benefits.
Furthermore, some relatives of orphans were reluctant to apply for emotional reasons if the parents were still classified as missing in the disaster, the ministry said.
But with six months now having passed since the disaster, many of those relatives may be starting to put their lives back in order, accepting the reality of the situation and applying for the benefits, a ministry official said.
While becoming an ordinary foster parent requires the parent to be financially stable and receive prior training, there is no requirement to becoming a kinship foster parent, as priority is placed on the importance of child-rearing by a relative, according to the ministry.
