Everyone knows that adoption is not an easy process. International adoption is even more difficult and has more room for problems than domestic adoption. There are always hang ups with dates, paperwork, lawyers, court dates, and so on. These are problems we excepted to face. The curve ball we were thrown on Friday afternoon was so much worse than any of these and we never saw it coming.
The Department of State (DOS) is submitting a number of proposed changes to the government. One part of the requested change is banning agencies from charging fees for child care. Our agency partners with a victims group in Samoa, where the children are taken after the referral. This group provides adequate care for the children while the governments process the necessary paperwork. Matched parents pay for this care and it's not something we'd question. However, this change alone will close the Samoa program. We're unsure of how this would affect other programs.
We also know that there are proposed changes to the education requirements. This would mean that we, as well as any other adoptive family, would have to take our state's foster care training program. We've read that several states have very long wait times for these classes and it could delay the adoption process by a year or more. What's worse about this change is that there won't be any supplemental help to the states to cover the costs of international adoption families' training. This is an already over-burdened and broken system.
There will also be increased costs across the board. Agencies will be required to adhere to stricter guidelines and provisions, which costs them more money as well. Many of these agencies operate as non-profit organizations and this change would cause many of them to shut down completely.
I type this out with tears in my eyes because I know that if the government implements these changes, we will never be able to adopt from Samoa. We don't have a crystal ball and we won't know what's going to happen until it does. We don't know what this means for our adoption process. We know that our agency, among others, have begun taking actions in fighting these changes.
What can you do? Educate yourself.
Saveadoptions.org has put together an easy to understand website information highlighting the proposed changes. Sign the petition and share it
EVERYWHERE. Read the docket
DOS-2016-0056. Post a comment on the docket. The changes are open for comment until November 7th. Contact your local representative. This is not an issue that an e-mail will draw attention to. Pick up the phone and physically speak to someone. Visit this
website to find your senators and this
website to contact your representative. Ask them to push the DOS to withdraw the proposition.
International adoption policy is not something that is commonly spoken about. It is not a hot button issue that will come up during the next presidential debate. It is not a topic that will be splashed on the front headlines of the New York Times. It is a change that will be quietly signed and passed without the general public even knowing. It will affect hundreds of families who have started and are undergoing the process of being matched with their child.
I don't care who you vote for - red, blue, oompa loompa, or Kermit the frog. This isn't a time to sit and think about what could be done or hope that someone else does it for you. This is something that requires action. For us and so many other families out there, please take the time to petition and contact those who speak for your state. There are children in other countries who have it so much worse than anyone could ever imagine. Those children deserve homes too.
