Lawmakers Grill DHS Over ‘Hospital Overstays' For Youth Under The State's Care

By Danielle J. Brown, Maryland Matters

January 2, 2026

Officials who oversee Maryland’s foster care and out-of-home youth placements say they’ve made significant progress in reducing the number of children placed in improper living situations – after months of backlash for kids living in hotels, hospitals and office buildings.

Webster Ye, chief of staff for the Maryland Department of Human Services, told members of the Senate Finance Committee on Wednesday that there are “no DHS youth in hotels or other unlicensed sites.”

He also reported there are currently only seven kids facing a “hospital overstay,” meaning they’re stuck at hospitals well after their medical needs have been addressed.

“To be clear, that is seven too many,” Ye said. “We want to get to zero as quickly and as safely as we can. But we are taking steady efforts … to reduce that number.”

After the death last year of Kanaiyah Ward, however, a 16-year-old who was temporarily placed in a hotel while in state care, lawmakers pushed department officials to work harder on clearing all hospital overstays and other improper placements of foster children.

“I would urge the department to please stay on top of this,” Sen. Clarence Lam (D-Anne Arundel and Howard) said during the Finance Committee meeting. “It should not require the death of an individual under the state’s care to have to lead some of these systemic changes that need to take place.”

Department of Human Services orders an end to placing foster children in hotels

Maryland’s challenges with placing foster kids in less-than-ideal locations have concerned lawmakers for some time.

Prior to Ward’s death, the department was already in hot water after state auditors said the agency’s Social Services Administration had placed nearly 300 children in hotels during fiscal years 2023 and 2024, under the supervision of unlicensed providers. According to the audit, 82 of those youth “remained in hotels between 3 months and 2 years.”

Five days after the audit was released, Ward was found dead in a room at a Residence Inn by Marriott in Baltimore. Human Services Secretary Rafael López said in an Oct. 22 statement that the department was ending the practice of placing youth in unlicensed settings for out-of-home care.

Since then, the department has worked to place those children in proper foster care or similar settings. But officials are still working to clear several foster kids out of hospital beds or emergency rooms.

This time last year, there were 20 youth in “hospital overstays,” when children under the care of the state are kept in medical settings because they do not have another place to go after they receive their medical care. Now it’s just seven, Ye reports.

Finance Chair Pam Beidle (D-Anne Arundel) wanted more information on how long those seven remaining children had been in hospitals, but Ye did not have those numbers on hand.

Beidel worries that there are other youths stuck in hospital beds who are not under the jurisdiction of DHS.

Senate Finance Chair Pam Beidle (D-Anne Arundel) listens during a committee hearing. (Photo by Danielle J. Brown/Maryland Matters)

“In one particular case I visited, this child had been there over 60 days,” Beidle said. “This child was in a room for 60 days, no treatment, couldn’t go outside. Just had food and clothes – that was it.

“I was told that DHS doesn’t take custody if they don’t have a placement for children. So they’re languishing in emergency room overstay situations, with no additional services from DHS,” she said.

Last session, Beidle sponsored legislation to create a workgroup studying the issue, which spoke with lawmakers in the Senate Finance Committee and later in the House Health Committee Wednesday.

The Workgroup on Children in Unlicensed Settings and Pediatric Overstays told lawmakers that they believe there are dozens of kids who are stuck in hospital overstay “limbo” but not under the jurisdiction of DHS.

Jane Krienke, a representative for Maryland Hospital Association with the workgroup, told delegates that as of Jan.8, there may be closer to 32 kids who are sitting in hospital beds with nowhere to go.

Krienke said that figure comes out of counts from DHS, the Maryland Department of Health and hospitals that report that kids were dropped off for medical care but have not been picked up by their caregivers after discharge. Krienke says those kids are also stuck in “limbo.”

Lawmakers call for hearings to review ‘broken’ Social Services Administration

Those 32 youth include the seven who are officially under the custody of DHS, while nine are in a process that would transfer them into the oversight of state officials.

“It’s unclear if this is the complete picture, but it’s the best we can do now,” she said.

The workgroup has had its own challenges. It was supposed to deliver a report on hospital overstays and unlicensed settings to the General Assembly by Oct. 1. But the workgroup was not staffed with appointees in time to create the report by the deadline. In fact, the workgroup’s first meeting was Oct. 2, and is now working on an interim report with a final report expected by April.

Del. Tiffany T. Alston (D-Prince George’s) said that she also learned of an overstay case when she visited a hospital.

“The only reason why we have this kid is because we don’t have anywhere to send them,” Alston said. “And that’s just shameful. We should all be ashamed of ourselves.”

Health Committee Chair Heather Bagnall (D-Anne Arundel) was “perturbed” and asked the workgroup to collaborate with lawmakers on legislation that could further improve hospital overstay concerns.

“I think there’s a lot of concern in this room, and there’s a real sense of urgency, that we don’t want to be back in this room in a year having the same conversation,” she said.