Adoptee’s
access-to-original-birth-certificates law is successful in Oregon!
Overview
Adoptees age 21 and older gained access to a copy of their original birth records when the Oregon statute was amended in 1998 and affirmed by the Oregon Supreme Court in 2000. The law also gave birth parents an opportunity to file a form indicating their preference regarding contact.
Facts and Data as of December 2004
1. A total of 8,033 adult adoptees have received their records since May 31, 2000.
2. Birth parents’ response to contact has been extremely positive.
392 requested
direct contact with the adoptee.
29 requested contact through an
intermediary.
3. The number of birth parents requesting “no contact” is miniscule.
The first year 79
birth parents requested no contact.
Through December 2004 only 4 more "no contact" requests have been made.
This makes a total of 83 birth parents who have asked for no contact.
Approximately 107,730 persons have been adopted in Oregon since 1920. Even if half of the birth parents were deceased, the number requesting no contact would be 0.08% of all relinquishing birth mothers.
4. Adoption in Oregon has increased since the law went into effect.
Oregon Department of Human Services reports that the number of independent (attorney assisted) adoptions increased from 208 in 2001 to 221 in both 2002 and 2003. The National Adoption Information Clearing House reported in 2004, on a report on 2000 and 2001 adoptions that " ..., Oregon, and Kansas seem to have more adoptions, and States like Texas and Pennsylvania fewer adoptions, than would be expected if adoptions were correlated to population size alone." (Kansas has always had full access to original birth records by adult adoptees.)
5. Abortion in Oregon has decreased since the law went into effect.
Oregon's Center for Health Statistics and Vital Records reports that the number of induced abortions dropped 7.2% in the two years since the law was passed.
6. “Oregon's law has brought honesty and openness to adoption.” (Oregonian editorial June 20, 2003)
The Oregonian, Oregon’s largest newspaper, opposed this legislation believing the law “broke decades-old promises of secrecy made to birth parents”. They acknowledged the value of the contact preference form and said, “Everyone has a right to know who brought them into the world. Outsiders can't know the full impact of the law on women and families, but the numbers and stories suggest this experiment is working.”
7. The contact preference option gives birth parents a voice in the process.
Prior to enactment of the Oregon access statute, birth parents had no way of communicating their wishes regarding contact to their relinquished son or daughter.
8. No violations of contact preference requests have been reported.
Oregon Department of Human Services Health Division and Oregon State agency personnel indicate they have no knowledge of any violations of a no-contact preference request filed by a birth parent.
Originally
Prepared by NJ Coalition for Adoption Reform and Education (NJCARE)
with Paul Shibbelhute, American Adoption Congress
Contact: Judy Foster, birth parent, 973-455-1268, jfoster7@optonline.net; Pam
Hasegawa, adoptee, 973-292-2440,
pamgawa@optonline.net;
or Jane Nast, adoptive parent, 973-267-8698,
janenast@compuserve.com. Edited for
publication at www.Txcare.org, and updated
with December 2004 numbers, by Bill Betzen,
bbetzen@aol.com
Data provided by: Carol A. Sanders, Center of Health Statistics, Oregon Health
Division, Portland, Oregon 97232 September 2004
and by Jennifer A. Woodward, Ph.D.,
Center of Health Statistics, Oregon Health Division, Portland, Oregon 97232
December 2004.