Adoption Council of Canada/ Conseil d'Adoption du Canada

HOW TO FIND SUBSIDIES FOR DOMESTIC ADOPTION

(Apr. 15, 2005) Can prospective parents in Canada get some kind of financial help when adopting domestically? They can, when adopting a child with special needs who is in government care. "Adoption subsidies" are available in many provinces, though some provinces are more generous than others.

As defined in ACC's Adoption Glossary (go to http://www.adoption.ca and click "Glossary"), an adoption subsidy is a government benefit to offset the costs of adopting and raising a child with special needs. Parents may get one-time and monthly payments to defray unusual expenses, such as medical and dental expenses, respite care, counselling services and therapy not covered by health insurance.

NACAC's subsidy profiles

For information on exactly what subsidies are available, we are indebted to a survey by the North American Council on Adoptable Children (NACAC), an organization based in the U.S. but with both U.S. and Canadian board members.

NACAC has set up the Adoption Subsidy Resource Center to educate parents and professionals on the subsidies available. (Its work is funded by the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.) Each year the centre surveys U.S. states about their adoption assistance programs.

In 2003 the Adoption Council of Canada asked NACAC to create adoption assistance profiles for the 13 provinces and territories. ACC revised the U.S. questionnaire so it used Canadian terms. ACC also gained support for the survey by explaining its purpose to provincial adoption officials and the Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies.

So far, Jeanette Wiedemeier Bower, head of the Adoption Subsidy Resource Center, and her staff have been able to complete eight profiles (Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Saskatchewan and Yukon) and partially finish the Ontario profile. She is still awaiting questionnaires from Nunavut, Newfoundland and Labrador, and some Ontario agencies.

Profiles are available on the NACAC web site, at http://www.nacac.org/subsidy_provincialprofiles.html. They give such information as eligibility, payments, special services and program procedures.

Adoption assistance is not funded at the national level. Funding for post-adoption support must come from individual provinces, and not every province has an adoption assistance program. Currently, Prince Edward Island and Quebec do not offer such a program.

No ministry funding in Ontario

As for Ontario and its many child welfare agencies, the reporting is incomplete. Of 53 agencies, one has no adoption assistance program and 35 have not reported. That leaves 17 Children's Aid Societies for which profiles are available. Each CAS decides how much it spends on adoption assistance (and some offer no post-adoption support at all). As a result, post-adoption services vary widely across Ontario.

As an example, let's take the profile of the Grey Owen Sound Children's Aid Society, located in Owen Sound, Ont. The manager of Resources and Children's Services is Daniel Moore, who, as it happens, is also the Vice President of the Adoption Council of Canada. Mr. Moore reports that a subsidy is paid based on the special need of the child.There is no standard rate at his agency, but the maximum is $500 per month per child. Apart from monthly payments, no other specific post-adoption services are offered (such as respite care, counselling, residential treatment, parent training), because there is no special funding for adoption subsidies from the provincial ministry. Mr. Moore does note that "we try to stay in touch when we can and provide services when we are able."

Overall, CASs report that there is no fixed subsidy rate; rates are set on a case-by-case basis, depending on the special need. Kenora-Patricia Children and Family Services says, "There is a range that varies from up-front, one-time assistance (typically bedroom furniture) to $0 to $600 per month/per child."

Because adoption subsidies are not included in the funding formula of the Ministry of Children and Youth Services, CASs have to find the money in their general fund. That severely restricts what the public agencies can offer.

Services in other provinces

Ontario seems to be an exception in Canada. NACAC's subsidy profiles show that subsidies are funded by many provincial governments. For example, Alberta has a Post Adoption Support Program which is funded by the province's Child and Family Services Authorities. In Nova Scotia the subsidized adoption program is funded under the Children and Family Services Act .

What level of funding can parents expect to help them raise adopted children with special needs? Here are some examples of rates for this service, variously called "maintenance", "on-going assistance" or "adoption assistance":

Alberta: up to 90% of foster care rates, which run up to $25 a day.
British Columbia: up to $806 a month.
Manitoba: up to half the maintenance rate for foster care, or up to $11 a day.
Nova Scotia: up to $20 a day for board and up to $1,088 for clothing, subject to an income test.
Saskatchewan: up to $555 a month.
Yukon: up to $27 a day.

Outside of Ontario, parents of adopted special needs children can expect a full range of services in addition to payments. Many provinces offer comprehensive services like those Alberta provides: medical and dental care, home renovations to meet a child's disability, therapy, day care, respite care, remedial education, travel expenses and rehabilitation.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Canadian Adoption Assistance Profiles, www.nacac.org/subsidy_provincialprofiles.html

NACAC's Adoption Subsidy Resource Center, 651-644-3036, 800-470-6665, adoption.assistance@nacac.org, www.nacac.org/adoptionsubsidy.html

Provincial adoption coordinators, www.adoption.ca/links.htm#prov

Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies, www.oacas.org

ABOUT ACC

Based in Ottawa, the Adoption Council of Canada is a federally chartered, charitable organization which aims to inform and educate Canadians about all aspects of adoption, and encourage the adoption of children needing permanent homes.

Interested in domestic adoption? Consult Canada's only national photolisting web site, "Canada's Waiting Kids", http://www.canadaswaitingkids.ca, run by the Adoption Council of Canada. It shows photos and profiles of children in the care of Canadian child welfare agencies and waiting for permanent adoptive families.

For definitions of adoption terms, go to http://www.adoption.ca and click "Glossary".

Source: Adoption Council of Canada, www.adoption.ca

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Adoption Council of Canada
210-211 Bronson Avenue, Ottawa, ON K1R 6H5
phone: 613-235-0344 or 1-888-54-ADOPT. e-mail: acc@adoption.ca