The West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources is located at One Davis Square in Charleston, West Virginia. (Photo by Leann Ray/West Virginia Watch)
A child in foster care in West Virginia was injured while living in an Airbnb short-term rental after the state placed the minor there.
“The child injured at the Airbnb property received appropriate medical attention and is doing well. The situation is being handled in accordance with state law and child protection policy,” Angelica Hightower, spokeswoman for the state Department of Human Services, confirmed to West Virginia Watch in an email.
The DoHS uses Airbnb short-term rental properties to house foster children because West Virginia does not have enough foster homes or adequate facilities for children in the child welfare system.
There are around 6,000 Children in foster care in West Virginia.
According to DoHS, 17 foster children are currently living in Airbnb homes and hotels.
“DoHS occasionally uses Airbnbs, where appropriate as temporary housing,” Hightower said. “These environments can provide a more homelike environment, additional space and access to basic amenities such as kitchens and laundry facilities, which can be particularly helpful for youth who need stability and comfort during times of transition.”
Del. Jonathan Pinson, R-Mason, the has pressed DoHS He said Wednesday he was not aware that the state had used Airbnb rentals to house children in an effort to end the employ of hotels for foster children.
“It is important for the legislative and executive branches to have a clear picture of children placed in foster care, children placed in kinship care, and children placed in other situations outside of these two traditional family settings,” Pinson said. He and his wife are foster parents who have adopted through foster care.
“We, the Legislature and DoHS, want families and children to be better off. That’s the goal,” Pinson said. “But until we achieve that goal, we must ensure we respond to the obstacles facing the DoHS, which means we must have a clear picture.”
Senate Minority Leader Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell, also was unaware that West Virginia foster children were being placed in Airbnbs.
I wasn’t aware of it. I realize the system has been broken for more than a decade…
— Sen. Mike Woelfel, D-Cabell
“I didn’t know anything about it,” he said. “I understand that the system has been broken for more than a decadeand therefore I would expect the agency to treat the situation as it is – at a critical stage when children cannot under any circumstances be left behind like this. I expect (DoHS) and the administration to immediately raise the fire alarm and deal with what we are seeing here.”
Hightower added, “DoHS continually reviews safety protocols for all placements and remains focused on the health, well-being and safety of every child in its care.”
DoHS spent part of 2025 under a court monitor to address issues related to foster children living temporarily in hotels and 4-H camps in Kanawha County. Judge Maryclaire Akers of the Kanawha County District Court I ordered the monitor after learning that a foster child involved in a case in her court had attempted suicide in a hotel.
WCHS in November reported The The DoHS had updated its momentary placement of children policy to require staff to notify the judge and treatment team within 24 hours of a child’s suicide attempt or other medical emergencies requiring medical attention or a call to law enforcement.
Additionally, the DoHS has changed its policy to require two caregivers to supervise all children in the shelter.
Pinson said the employ of Airbnbs raises similar concerns to the state’s employ of hotels for children.
“All of these concerns still exist when renting an Airbnb to house a foster child, even if it is just temporary placement,” he said.
Woelfel called on Gov. Patrick Morrisey and DoHS Secretary Alex Mayer to immediately establish a committee to examine “how dire the situation is” in West Virginia’s foster care system.
Lawmakers are prioritizing care reform because the system is still in crisis
As state lawmakers announced Wednesday for the 60-day legislative session, the focus is on foster care reform on the priority lists for Republicans and Democrats.
Pinson will introduce a bill that would require the DoHS to establish a “central reception center” and emergency shelter for foster children for up to 72 hours. This would only be an option for children if a home cannot be found immediately and the goal is to end the employ of hotel accommodation.
“We’re going to bring this child here into a home environment that is well-equipped and where he can start to love these children and try to help them in this time of crisis so that they don’t have to go to an Airbnb or a hotel,” Pinson explained. He introduced a similar bill last year.
Morrisey has also made foster care reform a priority of his government and announced plans to establish a $6 million fund Bringing hundreds of foster children in out-of-state facilities back to West Virginia. According to DoHS data, there are 380 children in out-of-state facilities in states including California, Florida, Texas and Utah.
The governor’s plan includes renovating state hospitals to house foster children, and Pinson said expanding federal options could lend a hand reduce the employ of hotels and Airbnbs for foster children.
Pinson emphasized that the answer to the ongoing shortage of nursing places is this Recruit and retain outstanding foster families.
“…So that we can place children who are taken into state care immediately into foster care and the child can have continuity of care during the time they are in state care, and unfortunately that has turned out to be a long time,” he said.
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