Adoption… Foster care… these are familiar words that evoke different responses in people. These terms are common enough to the average person that not much thought is given to them. Ask a cross-section of people on the street and many would say, “That’s being taken care of by the government” or, “People should take more responsibility.” Like many issues in our society, it’s easy to place adoption and foster care at arm’s length, however, the reality is that so many of us have been impacted by them. While we certainly believe in sharing personal stories of adoption and foster care, we also believe it’s important to go to the numbers to get some further perspective. Let’s review some adoption statistics.
How many children are in foster care?
About 442,000 children are in foster care at any one time in the United States. The reasons for a child entering the foster care system vary but are most commonly associated with abuse or neglect by a biological parent, relative, or another permanent caregiver. While 45% of foster parents are non-relatives, 56% of cases have a goal of family reunification. 49% of all children in foster care actually achieve the goal of reuniting with a biological parent or other relatives.
How many adoptees are there?
About 7 million Americans alive today are adoptees. 6 out of 10 people or about 100 million Americans have some kind of direct connection to adoption. Currently, about 60%-70% of all domestic adoptions are open adoptions, That means, the majority of adoptees are allowed to have contact with their biological families at some point.
How many children are adopted each year?
Approximately 128,000 children are adopted every year in the United States. Although that number may seem high, the number of adoptions has actually decreased by about 15% over a ten year period. The state of Arizona leads the way with the most public agency adoptions, with Alaska leading the nation in overall adoptions per 100,000 people.
How many children are waiting for adoption?
Of the 442,000, children in foster care, approximately 115,000 will have no possibility of reuniting with a biological relative and need an adoptive family. Around 23,000 children in the foster care system “age out” every year. That is, they reach the age of 18 (or 21 in some states) without being adopted. About 20% of these children will become homeless when they age out.
When you ask people what they think about foster care and adoption, most will agree that we have a shared responsibility. Ask people what they know about adoption and foster care and few answers will be given. Our society is a family. We must remember that each one of these adoption statistics is a precious soul. They are not just numbers, they are beautiful creations of God who deserve dignity, security, and a forever home.
References:
Adoption Statistics: https://adoptionnetwork.com/adoption-statistics
Foster Care Statistics 2017: https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/foster.pdf
Trends in US Adoptions 2008-2012: https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubPDFs/adopted0812.pdf
51 Useful Aging Out of Foster Care Statistics: https://www.nfyi.org/51-useful-aging-out-of-foster-care-statistics-social-race-media/
