children s health issues
Adoption
Introduction
Adoption is the legal process of adding a person to an existing family. All adoptions must be validated by a court of law. Adoption, unlike Foster Care , is meant to be permanent. The goal of adoption is to provide lifelong security to the child and the adoptive family. Children who are orphaned are obvious candidates for adoption. In the United States, children can be adopted if the parents give up the child voluntarily or if the child is freed involuntarily through the court process known as termination of parental rights. International adoption (adoption of children from other countries, for example, from foreign orphanages) is also often possible. There are many terms for the types of adoption in the United States, but adoption can be organized into three major categories: Adoption from foster care Independent adoption or private adoption International adoption Adoptions can be open or closed. In open adoption, the identities of the child, adoptive family, and biologic parents are known to one another. In closed adoption, the identities of the biologic parents and the adoptive family are kept confidential. 