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AGENCY ADOPTION
Agency adoptions are legal in all 50 States and the District of
Columbia. In agency adoptions, adoptive parents and birthparents are
guided every step of the way by a knowledgeable social worker on all
of the legal and emotional aspects of an adoption. If the agency
workers are doing their jobs correctly, they prepare all parties for
everything that will take place. Birthparents are counseled about
alternatives to adoption. They are told what their legal rights are
and which expenses can legally be met by the adoption agency and which
cannot. Prospective adoptive parents are also counseled. The social
worker discusses various adoption-related issues, those to be dealt
with initially and those that might come up later. By interviewing the
prospective adoptive parents at length and visiting in the home, the
social worker determines if the prospective adoptive parents meet
State licensing requirements for adoptive parents, that is, that they
can provide a safe, stable, and healthy environment for a child. One
particular issue the social worker discusses is the fee, which is
established at the beginning. It can be very reassuring to prospective
adoptive parents that the agency fee does not increase if a particular
placement does not work out because birthparents who were going to
place a child decide to parent instead. For the same fee, the agency
continues to work with you until an adoption is completed.
In agency adoption, social workers locate the birthparents and
mediate any contact between them and the adoptive parents. The agency
workers know the adoption laws and have attorneys to advise them. They
make sure that the birthparents' parental rights are terminated
according to applicable State laws. The social worker also obtains the
genetic and health history on a child and the child's birthparents,
and can tell you the agency policy regarding disclosure of that
information. "Disclosure" in this circumstance refers to providing
complete and accurate background information about a child to the
person or persons considering adopting that child. The issue of
disclosure is the main legal issue in an agency adoption, at the time
of placement, and throughout the life of the adoptee. For
example, you may want more information about the birthmother's
prenatal care, or in the case of a toddler or preschooler from another
country who has been living in an orphanage, more information about
the child's health status. Agency workers could tell you that they
have done everything they can to obtain that information, and have
told you all they know. You must decide whether you feel comfortable
with that amount of information. Also, you must consider future access
to information. For example, if the birthparents' health status
changes and they inform the agency, will the agency inform you? It is
a good idea to find out what the agency policy is on this and whether
it is within the State disclosure statutes.
Selecting a Reputable Agency
How do you determine if an agency conducts its business reputably
and lawfully? One way is to gather information from several agencies,
the State licensing and/or adoption specialist, and a variety of
adoptive parents. After comparing and contrasting information from
several adoption agencies, you will start to differentiate between the
agencies that appeal to you and those that do not, ultimately
narrowing your choice to one agency. If the agency or its staff has a
fairly long history of placing children, if the State adoption
specialist and/or licensing agency has not received many complaints
about an agency, and if adoptive parent groups and former clients seem
satisfied, chances are you will be satisfied, too.
resource: National Adoption Information Clearinghouse |
