With a Slower Process, Families Still Seek to Adopt

While more families are seeking to adopt during the COVID-19 shutdown, delays have made the process more frustrating for some. Your loving home is still desired, although the process may take longer. When issues are resolved, you can file papers in New Jersey with the Office of Vital Statistics and Registry.

The Process Has Been Slowed Down

Although some people have been wary of bringing new people into a home right now, those who have already been looking to adopt are facing delays. Typical adoptions used to take between six and nine months. That process is now taking longer during the pandemic.

Home studies, court hearings and the ability to maintain stable homes have all been affected by the shutdown. As far as international adoptions, the process has slowed because of:

• Border closings
• Curfews
• Social distancing
• Travel restrictions

Courage, dedication and collaboration are needed within the community as the new normal begins to take place. Those waiting for a child need to find the information they require and, in the meantime, be patient. As things begin to open up, the process of bringing a new child into the home will once more become easier to complete.

Whether you are bringing in a young one from China or nearby Pennsylvania, your love and care are still needed in providing a permanent home to a child. Right now, your patience is needed as well, and being steadfast will get you through uncertain times during which delays are the norm.

Even with the pandemic, you can begin your plans for adopting if you have not already done so. Online resources can help you and give you more information. Initial interviews may be done online, and foster care training can also be done virtually.

Children in Foster Care Have Been Impacted

While kids in foster care await permanent, loving homes, the current environment has had a negative impact. The isolation of social distancing along with a higher risk for contracting the virus has consequences. Many of these children have already been moved from one place to another and may get disheartened by the current situation. That’s why foster homes are an additional area of need.

Although caseworkers used to meet face to face with clients, technology has been used for foster care training and to provide information to people interested in foster care. Prospective parents are now turning to social media during the stay-at-home order. The pandemic itself has made the need to find more foster families stronger, and with online resources this can easily be a reality.

As the stay-at-home order is lifted, more children will need to be protected from abusive environments, where tensions and rising violence in the home were magnified by the close quarters during quarantine. The hope is that these children will find loving homes after the pandemic. This will be a period in which your love is greatly needed.

Families might know of local problems that have arisen during the shutdown right in their communities. There could be a variety of issues due to the virus including sick family members or limited resources. Trauma, stress and anxiety may have been triggered by the pandemic, and now, more than ever, children will need a stable and loving home in which to thrive when life gets back to normal or the “new normal.” If you are thinking about expanding your family during this time, consultations with a New Jersey adoption attorney may be a wise course to take.

Contact Cofsky & Zeidman to reach a New Jersey adoption attorney for help. We are located in Haddonfield, New Jersey, and can be reached by phone at (856) 429-5005 or by email. Donald Cofsky can answer all your questions about the law and bringing a new family member into your loving home during the COVID-19 shutdown and as things begin to open up again.