Babies Waiting To Be Adopted In The United States

Waiting for adoption older children.

Babies waiting to be adopted in the united states.

According to the most recent federal data there are currently more than 400 000 children in foster care in the united states they range in age from infants to 21 years old in some states. Waiting for a family is the longest wait of all. A weekly update of children recently registered with the adoption exchange. Around 62 of those were 5 years old and older.

Over 20 000 children age out of foster care every year without a family to call their own. Some sources estimate that there are about 2 million couples currently waiting to adopt in the united states which means there are as many as 36 waiting. About 135 000 children are adopted in the united states every year. Learn more hosting and mentoring.

According to the u s. Parenting an adopted child. Of non stepparent adoptions about 59 are from the child welfare or foster system 26 are from other countries and 15 are voluntarily relinquished american babies. The number of infants for adoption has declined from 9 before 1973 to 1.

Of those adoptions that are not stepparent adoptions about 59 are through foster care 26 are adopted internationally and 15 are american babies whose mothers made an adoption plan. Department of health and human services there were 125 422 children in the foster care system waiting to be adopted in 2018. There are many reasons babies are waiting for adoption and each child s situation. The average age of a child in foster care is more than 8 years old and there are slightly more boys than girls.

Why are there so many babies waiting for adoption. Independent of the reasons people choose infants over older children the result is that placement of an infant can take much longer as there are roughly 2 million couples waiting to adopt in the united states. Despite the fact that we live in one of the most fortunate nations in the world there are 515 000 children in foster care with 155 000 children waiting to be adopted.