Many people still associate adoption with
babies. That used to be true, but today the
adoption scene is different. Adoption in the
1990's focuses largely on children who have
special needs. They are children who, at one
time, were thought to be difficult to place
or even unadoptable. Experience has shown,
however, that there are families who want
these children, families for whom these children
are their first choice. Those who adopt children
with special needs are enthusiastic about
the love and happiness that these children
add to their families.
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Who Are the Children With
Special Needs?
There are forty to fifty thousand children
in the United States with special needs who
need permanent homes. One of them is Susan.
Susan is an attractive, athletic 13- year-old
who attends classes for children with emotional
problems. A shy child, she has lived in six
foster homes since she was 2. She warms up
to people when she gets to know them well.
Mark also waits for a family. This 4- year-old
was born with an underdeveloped brain and
is blind in one eye. He responds to touch
and brightens when he hears music. He needs
a family that can provide ongoing care.
Steven, 11, Mike, 9, and Bobby, 4, are close-knit
brothers who love to sing gospel tunes. They
are lively boys with warm, loving personalities.
All of these children are considered to have
special needs. Many of them who wait for families
have physical, emotional, or mental disabilities.
Some are mentally retarded. Some have been
sexually abused. Some have been prenatally
exposed to drugs or alcohol or test positive
for AIDS. There are children who are school-age
or older and brothers and sisters like Steven,
Mike, and Bobby, who need a home together.
Many are children of color. Most of these
children live in foster homes or institutions
while they wait for permanent families.
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Who Can Adopt Children
With Special Needs?
While agencies differ in their requirements,
most consider both single and married applicants
for these children. The ages for prospective
parents range from 25 to 50, and can be even
more flexible depending on the child's age.
Most agencies require couples to be married
a minimum of 1 to 3 years. Those who apply
need not own their homes, be experienced parents,
or have separate bedrooms for each child,
since children of the same sex can share a
bedroom.
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How Can You Learn
More About Children With Special Needs?
The most direct approach is to contact your
local adoption agencies. There may be both
public and private agencies in your community
that you can contact to begin gathering more
information.
Many agencies keep photo-listing books with
photographs and brief descriptions of available
children. Prospective adopters can peruse
the books to learn more about the kinds of
children who are waiting and, perhaps, locate
a child to adopt.
Parent support groups are a valuable resource.
Some maintain photo-listing books and have
close relationships with agencies and adoption
exchanges that match waiting children and
parents. Families who have adopted can share
experiences and guide interested families
through the adoption process. Listings for
these groups can be found under "Adoption"
in the Yellow Pages of the telephone directory
or by contacting the National Adoption Information
Clearinghouse.
Libraries can provide general adoption information.
Many have books on adoption, and an increasing
number are keeping articles and materials
on current trends in adoption, including children
with special needs, single parent adoption,
and transracial adoption.
Newspapers and television stations often
focus on children with special needs through
"Waiting Child" columns and programs. These
features usually appear regularly and highlight
children in the communities they serve who
need permanent homes.
The Clearinghouse has hundreds of articles
on all kinds of adoption topics in its bibliographic
data base. If a particular aspect of special
needs adoption interests you, you can request
a "search" of that data base and receive abstracts
of relevant articles.
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What Is the Procedure?
The search for a child begins, in most cases,
at the agency level. A prospective adopter
can contact an adoption agency and express
an interest in adopting a child with special
needs. A home study (a series of meetings
between the family and social worker to assess
the potential for a successful adoption and
learn more about adoption) will be done. Once
this is completed, the agency will let the
family know about available children who may
be appropriate for them. Since many children
with special needs are legally free for adoption
and are waiting for permanent homes, there
may be only a short wait for a child.
State agencies and their adoption exchanges
receive names of waiting children from both
public and private agencies. Exchanges, which
provide services free of charge, do not have
children in their custody, but take referrals
and try to facilitate placements. As a person
interested in adopting a child with special
needs, you may want to contact one or more
exchange. You may be able to register yourself
or have your social worker do it for you.
Regional and national exchanges take referrals
of children from several States and circulate
information about adoption. A listing of these
resources can be obtained from the Clearinghouse.
A national photo-listing book, Children
Awaiting Parents, Inc., has listings of
children throughout the United States who
need wider exposure. Agency workers who send
in the child's name must be willing to place
a child across State lines. This photo-listing
book contains information on 500 children
and has biweekly updates. Your local adoptive
parent groups or adoption agencies may have
this book. For further information you can
contact Children Awaiting Parents, Inc., 700
Exchange Street, Rochester, New York 14608
(716-232-5110).
The National
Adoption Center, a private, nonprofit
organization that promotes adoption opportunities
for children with special needs, operates
a telecommunications network. This computer-based
network links parent groups, agencies, and
exchanges. A family who has completed an adoption
home study may register with the Center. Contact
the Center at 1500 Walnut Street, Suite 701,
Philadelphia, PA 19102, (215) 735-9988 or
1-800-TO-ADOPT.
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What Is a Home
Study?
A home study, conducted by an adoption agency,
is a series of meetings between a social worker
and prospective adopter that provide an opportunity
to learn more about adoption and parenting
and to prepare for adoption. The home study
process varies from agency to agency. Some
conduct individual and joint interviews with
a husband and wife or individual interviews
with a single person who wants to adopt. Others
conduct group home studies with several families
at one time, including single and married
applicants. A few agencies ask applicants
for written information about themselves and
their life experiences.
In general, the group sessions (usually six
to eight) cover topics such as parenting skills,
the pros and cons of adoption, ways to introduce
extended family to adoption, and ways to help
the child adjust to his or her new family.
Part of the home study includes at least one
home visit by an agency worker. This helps
the worker determine if the home environment
will be safe and nurturing for the child.
It also gives the family an opportunity to
discuss its concerns and needs with the worker.
When the adoption study has been completed,
the agency will often present photographs
and descriptions of children who are available
to the family and will follow up if the family
shows an interest in a particular child.
Families say that they find the home study
process beneficial; it allows them to consider
deeply their personal feelings about adoption
and to explore their readiness for a child.
For more information about home studies,
consult the Clearinghouse factsheet, "The
Adoption Home Study Process."
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What Kinds of Services
Are Available Before and After the Adoption?
Before adopting a child, the family works
with an adoption agency and is assigned to
a social worker. The worker counsels the family,
preparing it to care for a child with special
needs. In some cases those who have participated
in the home study as a group meet to discuss
common issues. Sometimes social workers will
refer families to special interest organizations
such as the Association for Retarded Citizens
or the United Cerebral Palsy Foundation. Often
parents who have adopted a child with a similar
condition are helpful in sharing their experiences.
After placement, most agencies offer post
adoption services for the family. These can
include support groups, individual and family
counseling, and workshops on specific topics
of parenting. If the child was receiving therapy
or special schooling before the adoption,
he or she will usually continue with it. The
family social worker keeps in contact to help
ease the adjustment and offer guidance.
Adoptive parent groups can also provide support
and insight. (See the Clearinghouse factsheet
on parent groups entitled "The Value of Adoptive
Parent Groups.")
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What Will It Cost to
Adopt?
Usually, no fee or only a very moderate one
is charged for adopting children with special
needs. Financial assistance for the care and
services required by such children is available
to adoptive parents through Federal (Title
IV-E program under the Social Security Act)
and State programs. Each State's program is
different, and it is very important for families
interested in obtaining adoption subsidies
to contact their local department of social
services to determine what is available in
their State.
Under the Federal Title IV-E adoption assistance
program, payments to the parents of an eligible
child are available for the ordinary and special
needs of the child. Such payments are not
designated for a specific purpose such as
medical expenses, maintenance (that is, living
expenses), or special services. The funds
may be used for any identifiable need of the
child. The maximum payment may not exceed
the amount that would have been paid for maintenance
for that child if he or she were in a foster
home.
In order for a child to be eligible for
Title IV-E adoption assistance, he or she
must have been eligible for Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) (formerly
Aid to Families with Dependent Children)
or Supplemental
Security Income (SSI) programs under
the Social Security Act before adoption.
A child for whom Title IV-E adoption
assistance is provided is automatically
eligible for medical assistance under
Title XIX (Medicaid) and for social services
under the Title XX plan in each State,
as though he or she were an AFDC recipient.
Payments can continue until the child
reaches age 18, or until age 21 if the
State determines continuation is warranted,
and they continue in the event the family
moves to another State.
Adoptive parents do not have to meet any
financial eligibility criteria in order to
receive adoption assistance for the Title
IV-E eligible child. The parents may decide,
however, not to receive money payments even
though the child is eligible. That decision
would not interfere with the child's eligibility
for Medicaid or Title XX services, or the
parents' eligibility for reimbursement of
nonrecurring adoption services.
State Adoption Subsidy Programs
State adoption subsidy programs provide assistance
for children who are not eligible under the
Federal Title IV-E program. Adoption subsidies
take on various forms in the different States,
depending upon the child's needs and the State
agency's program, and are generally of three
types: medical, maintenance, and special services.
Medical subsidies cover some or all the costs
related to a child's specific medical condition
that are not covered by the family's health
insurance, as well as associated therapy,
rehabilitation, and special education. Some
States provide medical assistance through
Medicaid which also covers health care needs
not covered by the adopting family's health
insurance policy.
Maintenance or support subsidies are direct
payments to the adopting family to help cover
the child's living expenses.
Special service subsidies are usually one-time
payments to cover a child's emergency or extraordinary
need; less often, they are repeated payments
for services not covered by the medical or
maintenance subsidies. It is important to
check with the State to determine what is
an allowable cost.
Under both Federal and State programs, adoptive
parents of a child with special needs are
eligible for a one-time payment of nonrecurring
adoption expenses incurred in connection with
adoption. Such expenses include reasonable
and necessary adoption fees, court costs,
attorney fees, and other expenses directly
related to the legal adoption of the child
with special needs.
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Do Adoptions Succeed?
Most adoptions (approximately 90 percent)
are happy and successful, and parents say
that the children they adopt bring joy and
richness to their lives. The adoptions that
do not work out often involve children who
have serious behavior problems because of
trauma they suffered earlier in life. Many
families may need a variety of post adoption
services such as counseling, special schooling,
or therapy. More services like these are being
offered by agencies, and there are many parent
support groups that families find helpful
when they face difficult situations with their
adopted children.
A mother from New Jersey speaks for most
adoptive parents when she describes her 13-year-old
son, Carlos, who has cerebral palsy. "He is
a precious jewel and I wouldn't give him up
for anything," she says beaming.
This article was written by Mady Prowler
of the National Adoption Center in 1989. Revised
in 1995 by Debra G. Smith of the National
Adoption Information Clearinghouse.
.
Internet links and corrections added by Adoptions.com
2001- 2008
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