Some people assume that adopting internationally or from foster care is their only option these days, particularly in light of the media furor over celebrities adopting from overseas.
Not so. According to a special report in Adoptive Families magazine (June 2007), domestic infant adoption is alive and well. Here are some statistics that might surprise you:
In 2002, there were approximately 22,000 U.S. newborn adoptions, compared to 20,099 international adoptions to the U.S.
The average time it takes a prospective adoptive parent to match with an expectant (birth) mother after preparation of the portfolio is 12 months or less. Most families complete a domestic adoption within 18 to 24 months.
- 50 percent of the babies adopted in the U.S. are Causasian
- 28 percent are Asian/Bi/Multiracial
- 16 percent are African-American
- 6 percent are Latino
While the cost of adopting domestically varies widely (from about $5,000 to over $30,000), the median total cost for domestic infant adoption (before the Federal Adoption Tax Credit or employee benefits) is less than $20,000 for the majority of parents adopting. That’s considerably less than the average cost of adopting internationally.
True, there are restrictions for people who want to adopt infants domestically. Many agencies place restrictions on prospective adoptive parents based on their age, marital status, and religious affiliation. But so do the counties from which parents usually adopt.
The biggest “restriction” on parents adopting infants within the U.S. is that only 1.4 percent of pregnant, single women place their babies for adoption (National Survey of Family Growth, 2002).
The report looks at several common misconceptions about domestic infant adoption. In the next post, we’ll examine a few of those.
Source:
“Perception & Reality: The Untold Story of Domestic Adoption,” by Eliza Newlin Carney, Adoptive Families, June 2007.
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