Wait Time and Difficulty

Hi, we just started the process. The 4+ year wait is for the traditional program (healthy baby girls). The 12-18 month wait is for the special needs program. Most agencies are now only letting families apply to the special needs program. it looks like we will definitely be in the 12-18 month window start to finish, but we are open to gender.

My SIL was in the traditional program. When they began, they were told a 2 year wait. It ended up being a 4 year wait. They are glad they stuck it out, but the waiting part was TOUGH! Others may know the status of the traditional program, I do not. Best wishes in your decision.

12-18 months is for the special needs program. children ranging in age from 8 months to 13 years with sometimes very minor needs, sometimes no special needs other than age, and sometimes very significant needs. 4 + years for the non-special needs program, healthy children under age 18 months. mostly girls, but some families get surprised with a healthy boy referral :) We started our process in China in January 2010 and brought home a 17 month old baby boy in October 2010. He is perfectly healthy, had his cleft palate repaired in December and is doing great! 10 months from start to finish.

I have also read that some things may be calssified as "special needs" but they really aren't what one would consider "special needs" here in the US. For example, a club foot. Something like that could be easily surgically fixed. Are there other things that would be considered "special needs". We would like a relatively healthy child, however something that is an 'easy' fix would certainly not be out of the question. Especially since we are military, so any kind of medical treatment, surgery, etc. would be fully paid for my the military.

there are many many perfectly healthy children listed as special needs in China. our son, cleft lip and palate. healthy as a horse, we had one surgery this december, another next year and then one more when he is 8/9 years old. we will start speech therapy soon. he is 21 months old. this yahoo group has pics and descriptions of many of the children on the special needs list. so many children with very minor needs. heart conditions that are already repaired, or don't need repair, just to be watched. club foot, missing digits, limb differences, birthmarks, etc etc etc. [url=http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AdvocateforWC/?yguid=342527702]AdvocateforWC : AdvocateforWaitingChildren[/url]

Thank you so much! This forum has been so helpful and i have learned so much!

No one can predict what will happen with the NSN program. Right now, the number of available healthy infants and toddlers is way down, because of increased prosperity, increased willingness of Chinese people to consider adoptiion, relaxation of the one-child policy in some areas, and increased efforts by the Chinese government to promote domestic adoption. There are some people who believe that, over the next few years, the availability of NSN children could become so limited, and the wait for a referral could become so long, that the NSN program will come to an end. On the other hand, there are people who believe that many people currently in line will become fed up with all of the uncertainties, and switch to other programs. This could allow new applicants to adopt in a shorter time frame. At this point in time, I would not consider applying to the NSN program. However, applying to the SN program could let you bring home a child in a much shorter time frame. Anyone who considers a SN adoption needs to think about the sorts of special needs that he/she would be willing to accept. As an example: 1. Many children who are chronic Hep. B carriers are perfectly healthy. They do not have any liver damage, and do not require antiviral drugs -- just annual monitoring. Hep. B can be spread in blood and bodily fluids, so parents will need to teach their children about "universal precautions" and "safe sex". However, since most children today are immunized, and since many school systems and day care centers require their staff and students to be immunized, the child or young adult with Hep. B poses minimal risk to others. Even if early liver changes appear, there are some effective antivirals already on the market, and more are being developed. While there is a possibility that liver damage, including cirrhosis or cancer of the liver, can occur in middle age, it is very likely that, by then, even better treatments will be available. 2. Limb differences may not require any treatment, in some cases, and children and adults with these differences can often lead a very full and active life among their able-bodied peers. I know a man with a congenitally absent right forearm who has taught himself to drive a stick shift car, for example, and to do woodworking as a hobby. In other cases, it is possible for an individual to have a prosthesis made, so that the person can walk or pick up objects, and so that his/her appearance is more "normal". 3. Some children with heart malformations or malfunctions may have actually received at least some surgical treatment in China. Some of the children may be perfectly healthy now, although they may require routine monitoring. Still others can be restored to normal or close-to-normal health with additional surgical care in the U.S. Some families may also decide that they can accept special needs that may require a greater amount of medical care, special education services, and so on. As an example, some families have adopted children who are blind or have low vision, or who are deaf but can be helped with cochlear implants. Others have adopted children with cleft lip and palate, who wind up needing several surgeries, extensive dental work, and speech therapy. While a person can allow China to choose a special needs child for him/her, within certain parameters, there is also a program that allows families to look at information on certain SN children and apply to adopt a particular one. If the agency and the China Center for Adoption Affairs agree that they are a good fit with the child's needs, they will often be able to bring the child home in a year or so. Sharon

We sat down with the IA doctor we worked with with our other two children. She has traveled with adoptive family groups to China before and sees many of the children coming out of the SN program in her practice. This was an invaluable conversation as she was able to go through the agency's list of medical conditions and explain best case/worst case scenario for each item we asked so we could make a good decision about whether we are open to that or not. She says the condition she sees most frequently is cleft lip/palate followed by minor to moderate heart and orthopedic issues. I strongly recommend working with a doctor who has significant exeperience with IA from the start.

The best thing you can do with respect to S/N is research, research, research. Know what needs you feel comfortable with and study up. I will say in our experience, we've seen a few instances of people getting to China and the child had more profound needs then what they were told and what they were prepared for. So, that is another variable to consider. It doesn't happen often, but it has happened. We adopted our son in Oct. 2008. He was nearly 2. His cleft lip was repaired in China and his palate was repaired after he came home. He faces more surgeries and he's going to speech therapy, and will continue for who knows how long. Cleft kids also have issues with fluid in their ears, so tubes are almost always needed. With all that, we wouldn't classify CL/CP as a "minor" need, but it definitely is a manageable one. Other than that, he's perfectly healthy and a wonderful boy. He's smart, active, just the joy of our lives. Kevin

One more thing with respect to NSN wait times. Calls apparently are being made in Europe now for the latest referrals. These are for people who have log in dates of May 30, 2006, through June 2, 2006. That gives you an idea of how long the wait time is for NSN at this moment. However, China tightened the requirements effect May 2007, and the number of dossiers being submitted after that fell dramatically, so a lot of people think there will be a speedup in wait times once it gets to that point. This forum has a lot of useful information: [url=http://chinaadopttalk.com/]- China Adopt Talk[/url]

From the time we sent our paperwork to CHina, our first daughter took less than 10 months for a referral, our second daughter has already taken 3 years and 10 months. We are expecting to wait another 2 years or so. If you plan on pursuing the NSN program, start now! Some people predict that after China gets through referring PAPs with a log in date before May 2007, the wait will start to decline again. But right now, the wait is at a snails pace compared to what it was when we first adopted. Assuming you started in the NSN program, go with an agency which has access to the SN shared list. If you decide to stay with the NSN program, expect the wait to be about 5+ years. Then, you can always research the shared list, and pursue that instead. Also, it might be wise to ask your agency what their policy is on refunds, should China unexpectedly close it's doors during your wait time. That is not expected by most people, but a lot has happened in the past 4 years, so anything goes.Good luck with whatever you decide.ETA: Also, I think the rule still applies that you have to be 30 yrs old before you can submit paperwork to China.

We have been waiting 4 1/2 yrs. (54 months). We still don't know how much longer our wait is!