Restrictive Abortion Laws May Force More Pregnant People Into Seeking Adoption Services

With Oklahoma passing one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country, more pregnant people may choose to put their babies up for adoption. 

Tuesday, May 10th 2022, 4:45 pm



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With Oklahoma passing one of the most restrictive abortion laws in the country, more pregnant people may choose to put their babies up for adoption. 

Families who are making the choice will have two routes they can take: private adoption or through the state. 

Deaconess Pregnancy & Adoption is a private agency that has connected thousands of children with families over the course of 120 years. The agency finds homes for about 20 kids each year. 

"Adoptive families are able to say what they're open to and then we show profiles to the birth mom based on families that are going to be a match," explained Heather Hails, Executive Director at Deaconess. 

The parent giving up the child then has a say on which family will raise the child. 

"We tend to work with about 100 women a year that are considering adoption. Usually about one in six will choose to follow through and make an adoption plan," explained Hails. She added, "they get to choose the family. They can choose a name for their child. They can choose how much contact they want with their child." 

The adoption plan doesn’t have to start during the pregnancy. Hails said they have gotten calls from delivery rooms and even a few months after birth. 

The agency serves all of Oklahoma.  

The average cost for a private adoption in the United States is upwards of $40,000 for the new family. 

Deaconess said their cost is about half of that. With most of the money going toward medical and legal fees. 

There can be some hiccups in the plan if the father of the child decides to contest the adoption. 

"If he were to contest the adoption, then at that point the adoption does not happen. Then the birth mom and the dad have a custody hearing about the child," Hails explained. 

Private adoption does not deal with children in foster care. The most recent data shows that more than 8,500 Oklahoma children are currently waiting for their forever home. 

The majority of those children are in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metros. 

"When you're talking about state adoption or working with the DHS system, those are going to be children who are involuntarily removed due to abuse or neglect and ultimately the biological parents weren't able to maintain their rights," explained Hails. 

News 9 reached out to the Department of Human Services for more information on state adoptions, but they did not want to comment.  

Click here for more information about Deaconess Pregnancy and Adoption  


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