Adoption FAQs

YES! The decision is entirely yours to make. When you speak with your adoption counselor, she will ask what you are looking for in an adoptive family. Based on your criteria, we will provide you with profiles of waiting families. Once you have taken some time to look over the profiles, you will have the opportunity to meet or speak with the family or families you are interested in before you make your final choice for your newborn’s adoption.

YES! A Baby Step Adoption Agency believes it is your choice whether to have an open or closed adoption. We support whichever type of adoption you decide best fits your needs and the needs of your baby. Open adoption is an adoption where the birthparents and adoptive families have the option to contact each other during the pregnancy and after the baby is born. It is entirely up to the birthparents to decide the extent of contact. Closed adoption is a rare choice today. In a closed adoption the records of the biological parents are kept private when the family adopts the baby. In this scenario, there is typically little to no contact between the biological and adoptive parents.

YES! A Baby Step Adoption Agency will offer the most support and help for you and make sure it is court approved. We will help you receive as much as your state or the state of the adopting family allows. This includes medical, shelter, maternity clothes, living expenses, food, rent, transportation, counseling services, and more. There is no cost to you for placing your baby for adoption. We will help you with planning your adoption budget. You will never pay for your adoption.

YES! Every state provides procedures for termination of a father’s rights even if he chooses not to sign his consent.

YES! We understand that there are circumstances when the father is unable to be identified. In these cases, we will need to show the court an attempt was made to determine his identity and locate him. A Baby Step Adoption has an attorney on staff to explain your rights, legal options, and make the best adoption plan.

NO! All of our private adoptions are confidential. If you choose not to share your information, that is entirely up to you.

YES! A Baby Step Adoption Agency works with many families who are comfortable adopting a child exposed to drugs or alcohol. We will encourage you to seek help, and we can help you find the right place for you that can provide the proper treatment.

We will help you make a hospital plan to suit your needs. This typically includes who you will contact when you go into labor and who you will want at the hospital with you. Some birthmothers chose to have the support of the adoptive family in the hospital while others prefer to be alone or with friends and family. It’s your baby, your adoption, and your choice. It’s your decision, but you don’t have to make it alone.

NO! When the baby is born, he or she will be discharged from the hospital with the adoptive family.

NO! In the state of Pennsylvania, and in the majority of states, you are not required to go to court.

A Baby Step Adoption Agency works with birth parents and adoptive families from all over the country. Each party will have his or her own caseworker to guide and support you through the adoption process.