$25.5M Adoption Incentives
Dateline: 09/24/99
During remarks made by President and Mrs. Clinton today at an adoption event in Washington, awards and grants totaling $25.5 million were announced. The event was held at 9:35 this morning in the Presidential Hall at the Old Executive Office Building.
Both incentive programs fall within the scope of
Adoption 2002, a federal program established in 1997 with the goal of doubling adoptions from foster care by the year 2002.
Bonus Awards
Mrs. Clinton announced the Bonus Awards, based on figures released by the
Department of Health and Human Services, which has been charged with implementation of the Adoption 2002 intiative.
$20 million was presented to
35 states that have shown an increase in the number of adoptions from foster care in 1998, compared with their 1995-1997 averages. Awards are in amounts of up to $4,000 per child and $6,000 per child with special needs.
The total number of adoptions has increased 29% over the past two years, up from 28,000 in 1996 to 36,000 in 1998. Some notable individual state increases include:
Hawaii - up 249%
Illinois - up 112%
Texas - up 76%
New York up 2%, however NY placed the largest total number of children (4,822).
Adoption Grants
President Clinton then announced Adoption Opportunities Grants. These awards, in the amount of $5.5 million to
public and private organizations in 16 states, are designed to help fund research, new ways of increasing inter-state adoptions, and adoptions of minority children. The purpose of the program is to remove barriers to adoption, especially for children with special needs.
Pros and Cons
Joe Kroll, of the
North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC) credits President Clinton's adoption initiative with the increased numbers. Responding to concerns that some children are being placed too quickly into permanent homes, Kroll replied, "I believe that looking at this time frame through the eyes of children offsets any mistakes that might be made. The overall outcome for these kids is much better."
However, while there is widespread agreement on the need for reform,
the line between family reunification and expeditious release of foster care kids for adoption has been the hardest to determine. Some believe that the financial incentives are leading states to move too quickly into adoption, without making all reasonable efforts toward family reunification.
Do federal awards and cash incentives push adoptions too quickly?
Who Got The Money?| More Information on Adoption from our Editor |
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