When a woman is looking to place her newborn child for adoption in Florida, one of the options she has is a safe haven baby adoption. But what exactly does this mean, and how is it different from the traditional adoption process?
To place a baby for a safe haven adoption in Florida, a woman can leave her newborn child at a designated safe haven location (usually a hospital or other medical services station or a fire station) and is protected from legal charges of child abandonment. Florida, like many states, enacted these laws to prevent infant abandonment and the resulting tragedies. Safe haven laws allow new mothers to relinquish custody of their baby safely and legally.
Florida law also protects the anonymity of mothers who choose safe haven baby adoption, but today’s laws don’t provide for “baby drop off boxes” — mothers have to physically place their baby into the hands of an employee on duty for safety measures. The window for utilizing safe haven adoption in Florida isn’t very long, either; your baby must be 7 days old or younger.
If you’re considering safe haven adoption for your newborn baby, know that there is another way to place your child for adoption — with the law offices of Bryan McLachlan. So please, call us at (727) 398-0086. Safe haven baby adoption in Florida may seem like the best solution if you’re not ready to be a parent, but choosing to work through an adoption professional can provide many advantages that safe haven cannot, including the ability to:
- Place your child for adoption at any time — during your pregnancy, right at the birth and even after your child is born. Unlike safe haven adoptions, which require a baby to be 7 days old or younger, you can place a child for adoption weeks or months after the baby is born.
- Choose the family your child will be adopted to — If you drop your baby off for a safe haven adoption, he or she may be placed in foster care while they await adoption, without you having the opportunity to choose the perfect family for him or her to grow up with.
- Keep in touch with your baby’s adoptive family as your child grows up — Because safe haven adoptions are anonymous, you will have no way to contact your child in the future.
- Receive free, 24-hour counseling from our professional partners at American Adoptions.
While safe haven adoptions in Florida are safe and completely legal, for the well-being of your child, we recommend you directly interact with our law professionals and/or an adoption agency instead. Not only will you more quickly place your child in an adoptive home this way, but you can feel reassured about the adoption in a way you wouldn’t if you had placed your baby for a safe haven adoption. Remember, you can remain as anonymous with adoption as you would with a safe haven adoption; our adoption professionals will keep your information confidential, and you can choose a closed adoption if you’d prefer greater privacy after the adoption.
No matter which adoption choice you’re considering or where you are in your adoption decision, we encourage you to call adoption attorney Bryan McLachlan at 727-398-0086 for free to discuss your adoption options and how he can help you safely place your child for adoption.