Adopted babyIn recent weeks, Adoptions From The Heart has been contacted by several expecting mothers who began their adoption process with adoption facilitators or matching services and were unhappy with their services and so instead turned to AFTH.  We understand that no one option is right for everyone, but choosing the appropriate resources for your particular situation is essential. We thought we’d take the time now to answer some basic questions about how facilitators differ from agencies that may help you choose the services and guidance that are right for you.

Main Differences Between Adoption Facilitators And Adoption Agencies

Adoption facilitators and matching services are very different from adoption agencies, like Adoptions From The Heart.

Adoption agencies generally provide a much broader range of services than adoption facilitators.

In Adoptions From The Heart‘s case, that range includes pre- and post- placement counseling for expecting parents, performing homestudies to determine the appropriateness of potential adoptive parents for your baby, and facilitating the actual placement of your child.

The adoption professionals at Adoptions From The Heart make a life-long investment in each birth parent with whom we work.  We accompany expecting mothers to doctor appointments, guide you throughout the placement process, and long into the years to come. Licensed adoption agencies focus on what expecting parents want, considering your comfort with openness and the type of family you want to raise your baby, every step of the way.  We educate prospective adoptive parents to prepare them for the adoption process. We are here to help you decide what is best for you, no matter what you decide in the end.

Adoption facilitators, on the other hand, only introduce prospective adoptive families with pregnant women considering adoption. Generally, they don’t provide any support other than “matching” the two parties and only do so for a non-refundable fee paid in advance.

Adoption facilitators are not held to the same standards, legal or otherwise, as adoption agencies.

Adoption agencies are state-licensed to provide their services, and must meet requirements of training and expertise to keep their licenses. In general, the people you would work with at a state-licensed adoption agency are far more knowledgeable in their areas of expertise than those at an adoption facilitator. The checks and balances put in place by state and federal law ensure that licensed adoption agencies uphold appropriate professional and ethical standards.

In fact, many adoption facilitators are staffed not by adoption professionals, but by customer service representatives. These employees need not be approved or regulated by the state to offer their services. In many states, adoption facilitators are actually illegal. In areas where matching services are legal, they aren’t required to meet any professional standards; they’re just businesses.

In considering adoption agencies, it’s very important to find a non-profit agency, like Adoptions From The Heart, rather than an adoption facilitator who is, frankly, in it for profit.

Many adoption facilitators work across state lines, without any particular knowledge of these states’ adoption law.

This fact can lead to problems, some of which may legally invalidate the adoptions arranged by adoption facilitators. When a matching service facilitates an adoption in a state where their operation is illegal, the payments made to the adoption facilitator are considered illegal as well.  If the illegality of the act comes to light, the adoption proceedings will be immediately halted. Many prospective adoptive parents have been left at an emotional and financial loss from the illegal activities of adoption facilitators.

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The women that contacted us were unhappy with their adoption facilitators for a number of reasons, not least a lack of in-person counseling services. After being informed of the benefits that a full-service local adoption agency offers, they have chosen to work with AFTH.

If you are pregnant and considering adoption, don’t hesitate to contact us at any time. Visit our  Contact Us page to find an AFTH location close to you.