Do You Get Maternity Leave If You Adopt A Baby?

The number of children adopted from foster care has plummeted in recent years. But that doesn't mean the process is easy or straightforward.

Adoption agencies have a difficult time finding qualified birth parents for kids who aren't infants. A new Connecticut law, which takes effect in June, is designed to help. It gives adoption agencies that work with foster youth the right to offer maternity leave to any child they adopt. The law does not require agencies to offer it, but they can do so if they want.

In order to qualify, an agency must have had at least six children placed in its care since the beginning of 2016. It must also have completed a foster care training program and completed a quality review by the state's Department of Children and Families.

Maternity Leave For Adoptions

Adoption agencies say they've already started offering maternity leave to pregnant teens.

The new law has drawn mixed reactions from the adoption community. Some say it's a nice gesture, but others worry about whether agencies will actually offer the benefit. "If the government is going to mandate something, we want to see some real data and proof that it's needed," says Karen Murtaugh, executive director of the Adoption Institute, a national trade association.

Adoptions of older kids have been on the rise in recent years. From 2014 to 2019, the number of children adopted from foster care aged 5 or older increased by nearly 50 percent, according to the National Council for Adoption. The number of children adopted from foster care aged 10 to 17 grew by nearly 30 percent during the same time period.

In Connecticut, where the new law took effect in January, the number of children adopted from foster care declined by 7 percent from 2017 to 2018. The number of kids adopted from foster care who were older than 12 rose by 22 percent. And adoption agencies in the state say they're already seeing a rise in the number of pregnant foster kids coming forward for adoption.

Adoption agencies say they may not be able to give pregnant foster kids maternity leave if they don't have the space or resources to accommodate them.

The new law does not require agencies to pay for the maternity leave. Agencies may offer maternity leave at their own discretion, though they'll be allowed to charge extra fees to cover the costs. They can also opt to cover the cost of the leave for any kids they adopt.

For now, no one knows how many adoption agencies will offer maternity leave, and no one knows how many kids will take advantage of the new law.