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Could someone tell me what the differences are if any in adoption agency vs. facilatators? Thanks
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Hi,
So far, from what I have found out, an agency is a full package and a facilitator is not. Meaning, with an agency they help make (facilitate) a match with a birth mom and work with hopeful adoptive parents. They also often provide expences for the birthmom the homestudy for a parents, and provide counseling, leagal representation for both a parents and b parents, and they complete the adoption process from start to finish.
A facilitator works with the birth parents and from what I understand aids them in getting the help they need. They also work with adoptive parents with profiles and making the match. As far as the homestudy goes with facilitators some can provide them ad some don't. You usually find someone on your own to do the homestudy and the legal representation through the process.
Both seem to work out great for people depending on thier circumstances. Basically both help a parents and b parents find each other, there are just different levels involved with the rest of the adoption process.
Hopefully that helps!
Good luck, pm me me if I can help!
Carrie
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:) Thanks so much. We are in the process of adopting our foster son but since it is through the state it is pretty simple. We have also been matched on a last minute situation with a birthmom through a adoption facilatator. We where not contracted with them when we matched. It was simply God's Time. Our baby is due the second week of November.
Thanks again.
Do some research on facilitators.
The State Department has received a growing number of complaints concerning adoption facilitators operating in various countries. Licensing of agents and facilitators is done in accordance with local law. Unfortunately, not all foreign governments require that agents and facilitators be licensed. Accordingly, it can be difficult to hold facilitators accountable for fraud, malfeasance, or other bad practices in general. Under these circumstances the Department of State cannot endorse individual adoption facilitators in a given country.
We strongly urge American citizens contemplating international adoption to retain the services of a reputable adoption agency licensed by one or more U.S. States. Adopting parents should question their agency about the qualifications and experience of any facilitators it might use in a foreign country and the degree to which the agency assumes responsibility for the actions of its agents or facilitators. We would encourage adopting parents to consider carefully their decision to use a particular agency if that agency asserts that it is not responsible for the actions of its agents or facilitators.
STATES PERMITTING ADVERTISING:
Alabama Indiana New Jersey Tennessee
Alaska Louisiana New Mexico Texas
Arizona Maine New York Utah
Arkansas Maryland Oklahoma Vermont
Colorado Michigan Oregon Virginia
Connecticut Minnesota Pennsylvania Washington
District of Columbia Mississippi South Carolina West Virginia
Florida Missouri South Dakota Wyoming
Iowa New Hampshire
STATES THAT DO NOT ALLOW ADVERTISING BY NON-LICENSED PERSONS:
California Illinois Montana North Dakota
Delaware Kansas Nebraska Ohio
Georgia Kentucky Nevada Rhode Island
Hawaii Massachusetts North Carolina Wisconsin
Idaho
From the Adoption Law Center of Beverly Hills
Unlicensed Adoption Facilitators
new class of participants in adoption has emerged in the past five or six years: Adoption Facilitators. They are in the business of linking up birth mother and potential adopting couples for a fee.
California law regulates their advertising to some extent, although, unlike lawyers and adoption agencies, facilitators are unlicensed. In many states, their activities are illegal.
The essence of their business is advertising for birth mothers. The most modest fee I know of for this service is $2900; one Southern California facilitator demands over $16,000!
Even after a facilitator has located a birth mother, the adopting parents must hire an attorney or licensed adoption agency to complete the adoption legalities.
Facilitators are baby-finders; few are equipped or even inclined to screen birth mothers or recognize potential adoption disasters. Unfortunately, many facilitators operate under names that make them sound like licensed adoption agencies, even though they are not. Because too often these facilitators neglect to disclose the true natures and limitations of their practices, many of the adopting couples who consult them wind up with serious - and expensive - problems. That is why one leading California lawyer, whose practice is devoted to litigating adoptions that are falling apart, says facilitator-arranged placements are her "bread and butter."
There are some facilitators with professional credentials, such as a Ph.D. in psychology or counseling, and do a capable job, not only in finding babies, but also in assessing birth parents and disclosing problems to potential adopting parents. Unfortunately, those facilitators are few.
Definition of an adoption facilitator from the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse:
Definition: Individual whose business involves connecting birth parents and prospective adoptive parents for a fee (only allowed in a few States).
{Notice NAIC states only allowed in a few states contrary to a previous post on this thread}
Quoted from An Adoption Facilitator:
What is an Adoption Facilitator and what is their role in an adoption?
By definition an adoption facilitator is someone that helps facilitate adoptions and that is neither an adoption attorney nor an agency. As defined by the State of California Family Code commencing with Chapter 1.5, Section 8623: Adoption facilitators may "Advertise for the purpose of soliciting parties to an adoption or locating children for an adoption or acting as an intermediary between the parties to an adoption." Unfortunately, this definition can mean a lot of different things to different people. If you are going to use a facilitator you should understand what their role should be. First and most important you will absolutely need an adoption attorney and/or an agency. A facilitator should never try to supplement or replace either of these adoption professionals.
oh.essortment.com/informa...p_rese.htm
Source sited above:
Adoption facilitators may be referred to as the modern day "matchmakers" in the world of private adoption. Facilitators tend to network with attorneys, birthparents and adoptive families. Their networking helps bring birthparents and adoptive families together for the purpose of the birthparent placing a child with a family for adoption. In the case of private adoption, only a birthparent is able to place a child for the purpose of adoption.
In their matchmaking endeavors, facilitators obtain information from both birthparents and adoptive families which may be shared with each party for the purpose of encouraging a match between the parties. Since, in most cases, neither attorneys nor facilitators are licensed or trained social workers, the term "screening" of birthparents or adoptive families seems to be an inaccurate description of the information intake they perform.
This article is by a Quad A attorney.....proving attorneys to have problems with facilitators:
Over the past couple of years there has been a disturbing increase in the number of web sites that promote adoption services to birth parents and adoptive families. With the advancement of the Internet, and its use by adoption facilitators, there are certain questions as to the legality of such sites, especially in states that specifically ban these types of placements and/or services.
The states that do allow independent adoptions usually regulate these placements in other ways. In these states adoptive parents and adoption facilitators are generally prohibited from advertising for birth mothers. Florida law, for example, specifically prohibits anyone from advertising or offering to the public, in any way, by any medium whatsoever that a child is available for adoption or that a child is sought for adoption other than a licensed child placement agency, an intermediary, or the Department of Children and Families to place a child for adoption. Furthermore, all advertisements and broadcasts must include the Florida license number of the agency, attorney or intermediary placing the advertisement. Violation of these rules is a felony, subject to penalty of law.
In Florida, it is also a crime for anyone other than a licensed child placement agency, an intermediary, or the Department of Children and Families to place a child for adoption. The term "placement" is broadly defined as the process of giving up a child for adoption and the prospective parents receiving and adopting the child, and includes all actions by any person or agency participating in the process. By classifying these illegal placements as criminal acts, Florida has demonstrated its firm commitment to providing a safe environment for adoptions.
Because it is illegal for adoption facilitators to advertise by traditional means such as the yellow pages and newspapers, it would stand to reason that it is also illegal for them to advertise on the Internet. In fact, I believe the broad wording of the advertising prohibition of Florida law, which is contained in section 63.212(1)(h) of the Florida Statutes, clearly forbids Internet advertising by "any medium whatsoever." The adoption facilitation sites are promoting services to birth parents and adoptive families in a manner that should be considered illegal under Florida law.
Aside from being illegal, a major concern is that birth parents are not receiving adequate counseling during the adoption process. Adoption counseling is absolutely critical to birth parents in order to help them during their time of need and to insure that adoption decisions are made freely and voluntarily, without fraud or duress. This lack of counseling could jeopardize the adoption, traumatize the birth mother, and leave the adoptive family vulnerable to a disrupted placement.
Another major concern is to the integrity of adoption attorneys and licensed placement agencies. If adoption facilitators are permitted to solicit their services in states that specifically ban this type of activity, then the entire adoption industry is headed for serious trouble. Adoption facilitators cannot provide adequate services to birth parents, adoptive families, or adoptees. They also have no accountability, as they are not regulated by any one organization. The more adoption facilitators are allowed to operate illegally, the more it jeopardizes adoptions for everyone involved.
Some more I found regarding how many states allow facilitators :
Is adoption facilitation illegal?
Facilitating adoptions and advertising adoption services by unlicensed entities is illegal in 20 states. The penalties in each state range from misdemeanors and fines to felonies and jail time. The remaining states are taking an active role and questioning the role and legality of adoption facilitators and the lack of services that they provide. One of the main reasons for such scrutiny is the fact that adoption facilitators are not regulated by any authority nor are they required to abide by any standards set forth by the state. This has lead to countless problems, inadequate services, and numerous failed adoptions and can turn a potentially safe adoption experience into a disrupted placement.
Special note: There is an unprecedented investigation at this time by the Attorney Generals, State Licensing Departments, Interstate Compact for the Placement of Children Administrators, and other authoritative bodies of each state where adoption advertising is illegal, to determine if certain adoption facilitators, their companies and their websites are in violation of state laws. The websites in question are actually owned and operated by adoption facilitators, and since a website is considered advertising, it stands to reason that these sites are illegal in each of those states. If they are found to be illegal they will be forced to shut down since the Internet has no geographic boundaries. Birth parents and adoptive families should be extremely cautious when dealing with these sites.
Why do all of these states want facilitators to be licensed?
This main reason is simply for your protection. Because adoption facilitators are not regulated, their motives and experience are often questioned. Adoptive families are placing their hearts, trust, and money with someone whom cannot be investigated through a governing body. Therefore the legitimacy of the organization and the quality of services that they provide cannot be verified. Would you want someone to operate on you that did not get the proper education and licensing to become a doctor? You would if choose a facilitator over a licensed agency to provide you adoption services.
The first question you should ask of any adoption program is, "Are you licensed?" The simple truth is that if the facilitator is in fact honest, trustworthy, and they provide quality services then they would have no problem becoming a licensed adoption agency.
If they claim to be license ask for proof, most have the basic required business license. When I contacted the bond company it was made very clear they no longer handled bonds for faciliators, if they had one prior to that determination would be the only way.
I'm new here but thought I'd jump in with my experience. We were fortunate enough to adopt 2 boys within 3 years through a facilitator and are now preparing to go back and complete our family with a girl if possible, again through a facilitator.
As with any adoption, it had it's ups and downs, mostly the waiting, but we have 3 sets of friends going through agencies who have been waiting more than 3 years and still don't have one child. They are all looking into facilitators now.
Bottom line is know who you are doing business with. Ask how many adoptions they do per year and check their BBB status and references. Talk to different people in their organization until you feel comfortable enough to go with them or look elsewhere.
I have seen good and bad things said about our facilitator on these boards -- this is my first time here. But we have had nothing but blessings received from them. And nothing but positive experiences with everyone in their organization.
Good luck to you, whatever road you choose!
Haley
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