Adoption Policy

Having a baby comes with a mix of emotions, not only for the woman but also for their family. This joyous, exciting, and sometimes terrifying moment in a woman’s life just scratches the surface of thoughts that are going through her head. Since more women are in the workforce, “scheduling” pregnancies around company time-off has become the norm. In order for some woman to get a couple months of paid leave they would have to work two years straight, without taking any sick or vacation leave. This kind of dedication can put strain on a woman, both physically and emotionally. She may not want to go to the doctor in order to save up for maternity leave. What about woman who cannot have children? Are there any incentives to adopt while working?

This policy is just one of many that is geared toward incentivizing the adoption of children. In this paper I will discuss the development of this policy, what its values are, and how it is currently being implemented. I would like to first start off with the values that this policy holds and the background of what created this policy. The National Adoption Center came about in 1972 in hopes to speak out for children who could not speak for themselves. With their help, 23,000 families have been created and that number should be attributed to the work of Caroyln Johnson, the founder of this organization (adopt.org/about). The National Adoption Center’s mission is to spread opportunity for

A few of what this policy offers includes benefits such as financial reimbursement to cover the adoption agency fees, foster care fees, medical expenses for mother or child, legal fees, and transportation fees. Another great aspect of this policy is that they offer the same type of paid leave, sick leave, and personal leave as offered to birthparents. Lastly, this policy contains resources for adoption and referral, such as consultations and meetings with prospective parents in completing the adoption process. Although there is a fundamental base of what this policy has to offer, each state differs in terms of eligibility and the amount of money that families can receive per child. For example, in Nebraska in order to be eligible for adoption assistance the child must be 18 years or younger, special needs, legally free for adoption, and be ward for the state of Nebraska when petition is filed. Nebraska also offers $1,500 dollars, non-recurring, adoption expenses for adoptive parents (childwefare.org). The eligibility, although similar in every way in Nebraska, differs slightly in the state of Ohio. Ohio requires that the adoptive family under goes a means test, or resource analysis. This type of analysis looks into the family’s income and assets in order to see whether this family is financially stable and able to take in a child. This is a way for the state to be more involved