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(757)491-0240 Adopting a Child
The central issue facing parties wanting to adopt a child is scarcity. There are plenty of people who want to adopt children. There are plenty of children who need adoptive parents. The scarcity is created by the preferences of the people who want to adopt. The degree of scarcity depends on the characteristics of the child. Age, race and health are the key characteristics. Healthy Caucasian infants are the most in demand. Demand is weakest for older minority children with health problems. People seeking a healthy Caucasian infant from the pool available in the United States can expect an expensive, emotionally trying, and highly uncertain experience. Some people escape the torment of this process by adopting children born in other countries. Those seeking a foreign-born child face a different set of challenges and expenses. People who are willing to qualify as foster parents, can find emotional satisfaction, government support, and a much higher degree of certainty. But their experience of parenthood is quite different from that of the couple who obtain the much-coveted healthy, Caucasian infant. This is a underutilized route to becoming an adoptive parent. People want as much certainty as possible that the child will be "normal." Children of alcoholics, mentally ill parents, and substance abusers may have physical and psychological problems. Disclosure of such issues by the placing agencies has become an issue in adoptions arranged by agencies. It is a special pitfall in foreign adoptions.
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