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Home › Articles › Traditional Adoption › Where Do I Start?

Where Do I Start?

Adoption Information for Beginners

Part One

By National Adoption Information Clearinghouse

Pages:  1  2  3  

Many prospective parents seek to adopt healthy infants, often of a background similar to their own. In the United States, a relatively small percentage of healthy, Caucasian infants are placed for adoption. Most Caucasian infants are placed through agencies and independent adoptions.

African-American, Hispanic and mixed-race infants are available both through public and private adoption agencies. The adoption of American Indian children (of all ages) by non-Indians is strictly limited by the Federal Indian Child Welfare Act (P.L. 95-608). Fees and waiting times for infants vary tremendously, depending on the type of adoption involved.

  • Children with Special Needs
    Many children with special needs are available for adoption. These children may be older (grade school through teens); may have physical, emotional or mental disabilities; or may be brothers and sisters who should be adopted together. Usually, these children are in the care of a state foster care system. Both public agencies and some private agencies place children with special needs.

    In addition, national, regional and state adoption exchanges will assist in linking prospective parents with these children. Adoption exchanges and agencies usually have photo listings and descriptions of available children, and many now provide information about waiting children on the Internet. In many cases, financial assistance in the form of adoption subsidies is available to help parents with the legal, medical and living costs associated with caring for a child with special needs.


    • Pages:  1  2  3  

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