Overview
- DHS Secretary Rafael J. López ordered an immediate stop to overnight stays in unlicensed settings, with all remaining hotel placements to end by Nov. 24.
- The agency reported six youths in hotels out of 3,762 in out-of-home care, down from 41 hotel stays in January 2023.
- The Baltimore Banner reported a child spent a night in a Baltimore City social services office days after the memo, and López said the department will address the apparent violation.
- To expand capacity, DHS announced contracts with four residential providers and issued solicitations for specialized programs and statewide one-on-one support services.
- House Republicans urged Gov. Wes Moore to fire López as lawmakers scrutinize audit findings that flagged sex‑offender vetting failures and costly, inconsistently monitored one-on-one caretakers, with legislation such as “Kanaiyah’s Law” in the works.