As of June 2018, there are 9,526 youth in foster care in Kentucky. The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services updates the data of current youth being served here. According to a 2017 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) report, the number of children in the foster care system nationally has increased for the fourth year in a row. Most government agencies and journalists attribute the rise, in part, to increased parental substance abuse. Of the 15 categories, states can report for the circumstances associated with a child’s removal from home and placement into care, drug abuse by a parent had the largest percentage point increase. Neglect as a circumstance around removal has also been increasing.