Conflicting Rumors
I’ve seen a number of people reporting what their agency is telling them over the past few weeks. I’ve been hoping some of them would begin to agree with each other a bit more, but it’s not happening.
Here are some of the things agencies are saying:
- They have been asked not to send anymore NSN dossiers, and instructed to try to move their families to the SN program.
- The NSN program is expected to move a little faster this year than last year, though there will still not be a “speed up”. Basically, I think this means the CCAA has said (to a few agencies) that they expect to do more LID’s in 2010 than they did in 2009.
- That the CCAA will not speed the NSN program up until they see enough attrition to make them believe they can stabilize the program once again. Once they speed things back up they will put a limit on the number of dossiers they can receive per month.
- That the new director is working to see that some of the children currently living in “long term foster care” be made available for adoption. Apparently, this director has the respect of many of the SWI Directors, and there are hopes he can get some of them to change their current policies.
As you can see, the things agencies are saying aren’t really giving us a cohesive picture. The latter two bullet points come from agencies who have been accurate about these kinds of things in the past, but the first two also come from at least one agency that has been accurate about these things in the past, too.
I have no idea what is going on. Once again I think we’re back to the blind men who touch an elephant and describe what they felt. They are all telling the truth as they know it, but the truth as they know it doesn’t tell anyone it is an elephant.
Clarification: Each of the above rumors comes from more than one agency – perhaps not worded exactly the same, but close enough to be recognizable as the same rumor. Each of the above rumors comes from at least one agency who generally does tend to have the ability get this kind of information out of the CCAA.
February 15th, 2010 at 8:51 am
Well, at least CCAA is communicating with agencies. Our agency rarely tell us anything if they are in contact with the CCAA. Most information we get is when the “box” has changed and if the agency travelled to meet with the CCAA. So, I am very dependent on what other agencies tell their clients, even if one cannot know what is correct or not.
February 15th, 2010 at 10:08 am
We received an email from our agency last night. They were letting us know that CCAA wants them to return any SN file if the child has not been matched with a family within three months. We are promised another email tomorrow regarding the current waiting times. If any of the above is mentioned, I will be sure to post it.
Cindi
February 15th, 2010 at 10:13 am
In support (sort of) of the 1st bullet above, my agency recently told us that they will only accept NSN applications for expedited families. They do not have an SN program. They also have introduced a yearly file maintenance fee.
February 15th, 2010 at 10:53 am
Our agency is going to release back all the SN children on their list this Friday. There apparantly is not going to be any more agency specific lists, or at least that is how I see it. Looks like all SN are going to be on a shared list. If they are going to do this CCAA really needs to re-think the current policy of locking the file and having to submit an LOI within 48 hours.
The reason I say this is that you have some children with very serious medical conditions and you can’t always find a doctor to review the file in such a short time especially on a weekend. You also want the doctor/specialist to take their time reviewing the file, this is a big life changing decision for your family and the child and you want to make sure that it is something that your family can handle and what risks are involved. It is a big decision and one that should not be taken lightly.
I have heard since last year that China was going to turn to SN only until they reach a certain quota of the SN children that have been adopted. I was also told that if we were in the NSN line we would be “grandfathered in” to received a NSN child. So none of this surprises me. I just wish that all agencies would be honest with the families before they even fill out the application then perhaps the family will still move forward with choosing China for their adoption or they will seek out other options.
I just don’t want to see families told stories and experience heart ache and long wait that are just coming in to the program.
We are just thrilled that we were matched with our daughter through the SN program because I could not wait another 10 years in this program. It would drive us crazy, and then for sure we would have to pursue other options.
February 15th, 2010 at 10:56 am
I also wanted to point out that our agency is awesome and they are very honest with us and they offer the SN program and are very involved with it. I think they are one of the bigger agencies that supports the SN program and those girls work their tails off all hours of the night to help the kids on the SN list and the waiting SN families to find their “forever families”. We are very thankful for them.
February 15th, 2010 at 11:05 am
Goodness, I would hope it would go without saying that they would refer more LIDs this year than last. If they did the same as last year, then that would be the most dramatic drop in referrals yet.
February 15th, 2010 at 12:24 pm
How long is long term foster care? If they are back in an instituition say 5 years before aging out than I’d rather they be available for adoption even from abroad than partially grow up with families and then be shipped off to a group situation.
February 15th, 2010 at 12:29 pm
waiting4kiera, Waiting4Katie08,
You both communicate on the fact your agency had to ‘return any SN child’s file which had not been matched’.
Are you talking about the same agency, per chance?
Is it something that applies to all US agencies or just some of them? Has anyone heard somehting on this topic in Canada, Europe, Australia….?
How can you be sure your agency(ies) will be proposed the shared referral system instead of the designated lists? I may be wrong, but it does not seem to be something written in the letter the agency(ies) sent to its/their clients.
Just triying to figure out what is now going on….
February 15th, 2010 at 12:37 pm
Our HS agency sent us an email last week that basically said that they are going to work with each family still waiting for NSN to find other options. Not a good omen. We are still waiting for our individual email.
February 15th, 2010 at 1:47 pm
We changed our Home Study to include SN in our 3rd renewal. I met a 3 year old SN’s boy last August in China I would have loved to have adopted him that moment. He was being cared for at a very nice foster care facility. They have asked his orphanage for me about his paper work and I guess the orphanage had submitted his paperwork up to 2 years ago, but the Provincial Civil Affairs in his region hasn’t processed them for some reason. Then my agency said it is really hard to find a particular child to be matched with. I wish there was an easier way, but I understand how hard it would be if everyone went over there and wanted to be matched to a particular child they met. I keep hoping he will miraculously make the list that my agency will get. It is hard because I know he is there just getting older and we would love to provide a loving home for him.
February 15th, 2010 at 2:15 pm
We are in Canada, Our agency stopped taking dossiers for the nsn program almost 2 years ago. They decided this has an ethical agency that this was the best decision for the program and for the families.Nothing would surprise me about the China nsn program.
February 15th, 2010 at 2:17 pm
My agency is no longer taking NSN referrals because they have been told not to by CCAA. They have been told that the only option available to international adoption for new cases is SN. As the first bullet says they are being asked to move all their NSN cases to SN. Although our agency is strongly encouraging, they are not forcing families to do this at this time. They have been getting SN referrals for families who have been waiting for years now pretty quickly.
I can’t imagine China can adopt ALL NSN kids in-country!
February 15th, 2010 at 2:37 pm
Has anybody’s agency said when they think or if the CCAA has mentionned when all of 2006 will be referred ? How many more years do late 2006ers still have to wait ?
RDT.
February 15th, 2010 at 3:36 pm
Is there possibly a problem with translation? They all sound similar, but very different, depending on how the information is translated. And if it is being translated by each of their own contacts or guides in China, then I can see how the info gets lost in translation. With this kind of important information given to agencies, one would hope it would all come to each agency with ONE translator. That would be easy enough in a translated email from CCAA. Or is that just too easy?
February 15th, 2010 at 3:38 pm
YR said:
In support (sort of) of the 1st bullet above, my agency recently told us that they will only accept NSN applications for expedited families. They do not have an SN program. They also have introduced a yearly file maintenance fee.
Have you asked them how much money it costs them yearly to “maintain the file”? That’s just absurd that an agency would charge you to stash your file in a file cabinet for a year. I hope it’s no more than the fee of a safe deposit box, and even that is a rip off.
February 15th, 2010 at 3:56 pm
The cynic in me has to ask if the agencies that state they have been encouraged by CCAA to move all NSN to SN cases, is it possible that these agencies have their own agenda involved, of successfully completing adoptions, to make way for new, and gain reputation of successfully placing children, without consideration to the fact that not all PAPs can handle the needs of SN children?
I can completely understand if someone starts with the desire for SN, or if they have a change of heart after starting as NSN…or even with a little encouragement from the agency to switch. But to push the agenda of moving from NSN to SN so strongly, whether because of CCAAs wishes or because of the agency’s needs…I don’t see that as a good thing. It has to be something that the PAPs desire to do without the pressure of doing it …or else.
February 15th, 2010 at 4:31 pm
French Marianne, I don’t know if we have the same agency or not. I will send a PM to Waiting4Katie08 and let you know.
cindi
February 15th, 2010 at 4:34 pm
I just tried to do a search to send a PM to waiting4katie08, but I didn’t get any result.
cindi
February 15th, 2010 at 4:45 pm
I can’t imagine the SN program could really absorb all those waiting for NSN right now – or even half of everyone waiting.
The third bullet is strange to me – it implies that CCAA is intentionally controlling the number of referrals rather than referring as much as they can each month (very depressing). While it is something I have always believed, I did not think CCAA tended to admit that. It also surprises me that they would need a quota system in addition to the new rules, but it is probably a good idea.
February 15th, 2010 at 5:40 pm
So they’re expecting to do more LIDs but not speed up. That’s a no brainer since March was so big. So maybe they’ll do 1.5 or 2 months of LIDs this year. Now, my question is, if they’re trying to move all the NSN families to SN, at what point will they cut off sending NSN referrals? At what point will they require everyone to accept a SN referral??
February 15th, 2010 at 5:40 pm
KarenInCa: I’m with you. We are a NSN waiting family and while through our recurring USCIS updates we at one time included we would be open to a SN child, we have since removed that given our age and changing family circumstances. Before anyone says it, we KNOW that an institutionalized child is never NSN-completely. We fully expect there to be some issues, but we are not ready or even willing to take on some of the big things health issues we’ve seen through our agency. And yes, our agency regularly shares SN files with their waiting families. We are extremely concerned that we would be “pushed” to SN from the NSN process. These rumors are very scary to us and after waiting just shy of 48 months… this process becomes more and more insane by the week.
February 15th, 2010 at 5:55 pm
I don’t like the idea of pressuring everyone in the NSN line to change to SN. Not everyone is equipped emotionally, financially, etc., to handle a SN child. And would you get to specify what SN you are willing/able to take on, like you do now? I know the argument that if you gave birth to a child, you run the risk of having a child with SN, and also the argument that many SN aren’t apparent until a child is a couple of years old, or even older. But that argument doesn’t fully apply here. Yes, you do run the risk of having a SN child when you give birth, but the odds are still in your favor of having a healthy, NSN child. If these rumors are true, then it sounds like if you stay in line for China, you have a 100% chance of adopting a SN child. Is it fair to the child to deliberately put them with a family that may not be able to properly care for him/her?
RQ: Any insight as to how soon all this may happen, if this is indeed the way it is going to go?
February 15th, 2010 at 6:04 pm
I don’t want to try and convince you Fortheloveof…, but I just want to share with you my experience and my thoughts:
After completing two sn adoptions and also after lots of contact with others doing sn adoptions and also those doing nsn adoptions, I’d say a minor to moderat sn is NOTHING compared to minor to moderate adoption issues. The sn just shrinks to a no problem at all, compared to the normal issues with adopted children. Many think “I just can’t add an sn too!”. But I promise, many many of the sn’s would not make you feel like there is any extra kind of burden to the parenting at all. Most sn’s need attention that is of a more practical quality. The adoption and the issues that come with it are of a completely different quality, so much deeper, so much more emotional, so much more exhausting… The “sn-thing” and the “adoption-thing” are not at all what most people think beforehand. But most grow into it when needed. And I’d say growing into the “sn-thing” is a whole lot easier than growing into the “adoption-thing”. And both are a wonderful experience!
February 15th, 2010 at 6:19 pm
“The cynic in me has to ask if the agencies that state they have been encouraged by CCAA to move all NSN to SN cases, is it possible that these agencies have their own agenda involved, of successfully completing adoptions, to make way for new, and gain reputation of successfully placing children, without consideration to the fact that not all PAPs can handle the needs of SN children?”
This is my thought too.
Moving all NSN to SN would force a great deal of attrition. It’s not always what a family can emotionally handle. If a family has individual (non-group) health insurance, it doesn’t always cover an adopted child’s SN.
It’s a shame that agencies are charging file maintenance fees, but I think many of them are doing it to keep the lights on. China-only agencies are in a really, really bad situation, and if the agency wants to be there later they need to get income now, hence maintenance fees.
February 15th, 2010 at 6:59 pm
I agree 100% with Mamman (while not at all advocating that all PAPs waiting for a NSN referral switch to SN. I agree that parents really need to be fully on-board and comfortable with special needs). Our daughter has what I would describe as a mild to moderate (potentially severe) SN. It is a complete non-issue compared to her very mild adoption issues. We adopted her at 22 months and she is now 4 years old. She has had one minor surgery related to her need, and otherwise, it does not affect her or us at all. Her adoption issues are so subtle, probably I am the only one who even notices them (if I had a dime for each time someone said “my bio child did the same things at 2, 3, 4″…I could retire), but they have been THE focus of our parenting for two+ years. In fact, I don’t even think of her as “special needs” in the least, apart from the fact that she is adopted. That is definitely her special need.
February 15th, 2010 at 7:48 pm
We are LID 06-10-06 and recently moved to another agency that had access to the SN shared list. We were given a list of medical conditions that are common in that program and asked to indicate which needs we would willing to accept. We met with an International Adoption Medical team and reviewed each condition. We were so surprised at how many of them were minor & correctable. We made the decision to proceed and were matched last Monday, the first time on the list!!
I agree that no one should be “forced” to move to the SN program but if you have not researched the program and spoken to an agency about it, it would probably be an eye opener. It certainly was for us. We now know we will bring home our son in a few short months!
Many hugs to all of you who are waiting and wondering!!
Susan
February 15th, 2010 at 8:39 pm
I too am concerned about “forcing” those waiting in the NSN line to the SN program. We adopted our daughter from the SN program 1 1/2 years ago and let me first mention that I wouldn’t trade her for the world as she is our light and joy. She does have what many would say a correctable/minor SN (CP). However, we have had 3 surgeries when we were expecting one. We also have her in speech and fortunately our county is wonderful but I know there are many that are not. She also has asthma, not in file, and is sick quite a bit. She is my little monster, snuggle buddy, constant companion and I love her immensely but I would not say her SN has been minor. I believe that parents must look at their own situation and be able to make the decision on switching to SN. So many questions that I hope are answered quickly for the waiting parents.
February 15th, 2010 at 9:41 pm
I am always so delighted to hear of the stories of SN children who’s health concerns turned out to be so minor, or easily correctable. This is my hope for EVERY child, however, we’re all well aware of the reality that not every SN is so easy. We live in the US and are in an area with access to some of this country’s best doctors. Sadly, our family and friends have had our share of bio children with SN’s – who also had access to this same health care, and did not survive. I don’t want any family to be pushed into something that they have clearly declared they are not prepared to handle. Outside of the emotional toll of some SNs, you also have to consider the financial aspects too… for example, one parent taking FMLA – unpaid – for surgeries, long hospital stays, long recoveries, etc. China wouldn’t be doing children any favors by placing them with families who are not able to meet the challenges their health may bring.
For me, this is the job of the social worker – a good one hears these families and advocates on their behalf. An agency should be thoroughly reading the reports and working to find the best fit for both child and family. No one goes into adoption with a “it might work” attitude. We’re all here thinking THIS IS IT – our forever family.
Again, I love hearing (reading) the stories of really successful SN placements. I relish the joy that families have in discovering their child’s SN isn’t at all what they thought, and is “nothing” to be concerned about. But on the flip side, I fall apart when I read about the families who arrive in China to find that their child’s health is not at all what they expected, or when they arrive home learn that their child’s health issue is much more serious.
We have nothing else left in the process that is as we signed on. So, let’s just be real about what we’re all capable of.
February 15th, 2010 at 10:50 pm
Regarding the question about translation — My agency’s information came from their sit-down meeting with the new CCAA director.
February 15th, 2010 at 11:46 pm
I have read and re-read the rumors several times. I guess I am not really seeing them as conflicting. While the rumors are all different, I believe that each of them could be true without canceling or contradicting one another.
The first rumor, that agencies are being told not to send in more NSN and try to encourage families to SN seems to make sense. The wait as it stands now is crazy long, and from what I can gather from the posts, many agencies are already encouraging the SN option.
The second bullet point seems to go along with what we have all been hoping for, rather than just referring two days at a time, more LIDS will get processed, though the same number of children might be placed.
The third one is one I find really interesting. I think that it dovetails nicely with the first one. As I see it, CCAA is saying, “hold up, let us get caught up, and then when we do, there will be a quota in place so things don’t get crazy again”.
Bullet point four I think is a means to an end- the end being that the CCAA wants to get through more LIDS this year than last. I would say the encouragement to switch from NSN to SN is another means to this end. More families switching to SN from NSN equals a shorter NSN line. That is, unless you believe there is already a quota in place which is an entirely different discussion.
As a footnote- while this is my first post- I have been following the blog and the forums for a few years now and my wife posts fairly often as well.
February 16th, 2010 at 9:48 am
Tenbert very very well said.
February 16th, 2010 at 10:38 am
Have you asked them how much money it costs them yearly to “maintain the file”? That’s just absurd that an agency would charge you to stash your file in a file cabinet for a year. I hope it’s no more than the fee of a safe deposit box, and even that is a rip off.
Yes I have and I am satisfied with their answer. I have and expect will continue to be happy with my agency. It is not their fault that the wait times are so long.
February 16th, 2010 at 8:21 pm
YR, just curious….what ARE the costs in keeping our PAP application on file? I’ve wracked my brain, and still can’t find anything substantial that could cost an agency for “maintaining” our application, while it gathers dust in an office file cabinet.
I’m really not being facetious, I’m just very curious as to how our agency can justify the added maintenance fees if they decide to do this as well.
February 16th, 2010 at 8:28 pm
tiredofw8ing said:
Regarding the question about translation — My agency’s information came from their sit-down meeting with the new CCAA director.
OK, but if it came from your agency’s translator, then that’s exactly my point as to how all the information can be interpreted differently. I don’t know if that’s the case, but with all the different information coming from different agencies, it probably is.