The Knesset Labor and Welfare Committee, chaired by MK Michal Woldiger, on Thursday approved for its second and third readings a bill to amend Israel's Foster Care Law.

The revised legislation removes the age limit for foster parents and includes a series of measures aimed at easing access to psychiatric and neurological medications for children in foster care.

During Committee deliberations, the original proposal, which sought only to raise the maximum age for foster parents, was amended to eliminate the age restriction entirely.

At Woldiger's initiative, the bill also includes new provisions designed to reduce the bureaucracy involved in providing psychiatric medications to foster children. Until now, the law often required the consent of biological parents and, in some cases, court proceedings before psychiatric medication prescribed by a specialist could be administered.

Under the approved amendment, foster parents will be authorized to give children medication prescribed as part of a psychiatric diagnosis without undergoing extended, cumbersome bureaucratic procedures.

During a Committee discussion last week, one foster parent testified that the time between receiving a prescription and beginning treatment could currently take up to a full year. Under the amendment approved by the committee, that process is expected to be shortened significantly, reducing the waiting period to just a few days.

Welcoming the bill's approval, Woldiger said: "This is an important amendment that puts the child's best interests first. Foster parents will be able to administer medication according to a physician's prescription without having to go through the courts and unnecessary bureaucracy."

She also noted that the change represents significant progress that will ease the burden on foster families and enable children to receive treatment in a timely fashion.