Changes in Louisiana’s system to help families and children under state supervision — including the closure of several centers and ending provider contracts — have left gaps in services and confusion on how to get them, some child welfare advocates say.
Former service providers say that after centers closed in September as part of a larger transition, no immediate designated place in the Baton Rouge region had agreed to pick up the work after that closure.
As a result, families were uncertain on where to get free services provided by the state, in some instances for several months as providers stopped taking new referrals to prepare to close, they said…