Home » Adoption Article
Adopting a Child with Special Needs
December 31, 2000
In the United States, more than 110,000 children with special needs are waiting for permanent homes. Traditionally, children with special needs have been considered harder to place for adoption than other children, but experience has shown that many children with special needs can be placed successfully with families who want them. The Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 (P.L. 105-89) has focused more attention on finding homes for children with special needs and making sure they receive the post-adoption services they need. Congress enacted the law to ensure that children in foster care, who cannot be reunited with their birth parents, are freed for adoption and placed with permanent families as quickly as possible.
1. What does "special needs" mean?
For many people the term "special needs" means a child who receives or needs special education or who has a disability of some sort. In adoption, the term is defined differently and may include the factors listed below. Guidelines for classifying a child as "special needs" vary by State. Children with special needs range in age from infants to 18 years. In general, children with special needs are those who:
- Have physical or health problems
- Are older
- Are members of ethnic or racial minorities
- Have a history of abuse or neglect
- Have emotional problems
- Have siblings and need to be adopted as a group
- Test positive for HIV
- Have documented conditions that may lead to future problems
- Were prenatally exposed to drugs or alcohol.
Almost all children who meet the special needs guidelines and who are available for adoption are currently in the public foster care system. Some have moved through several different foster placements.
|
E-Mail This Article
Printer-Friendly Format
Comment on This Article