Since the mid-1990s, state child welfare agencies have looked to privatization as a way to improve the overall performance of their systems – both in terms of cost and quality. Privatization comes in many forms, with different states choosing to contract out different services to private organizations. Supporters of privatization believe that private organizations can implement more innovative programs and more effectively use government resources. Opponents argue that in a privatized system, quality of care may be sacrificed for profit and that, when all costs are included, use of private organizations does not necessarily guarantee more efficient use of resources…