Waiting Child List FAQ’s 1.) Wow, there are a lot of waiting children! What do I need to consider before I start this process? We know it can be overwhelming. If your heart is being moved to adopt, keep gathering information. A good starting place is our Adopt and our Resource pages. There are many helpful links there, including this one from Rainbow Kids. Some of the things families should consider is the match between the sending country requirements and the adoptive parent’s situation (for example marital status, family size, health or mental health issues), the adoptive family’s current composition and readiness for adoption, and special health or mental health needs the child may have in addition to HIV care. We are adoptive parents too and were once in your situation, so we know it can be daunting at first. Project HOPEFUL is here to encourage you in this process! 2.) Are you an agency? Do you place children? No. Project HOPEFUL is a not for profit organization whose mission is to educate, encourage, and enable families and individuals to advocate for and adopt children with HIV/AIDS. Project HOPEFUL is NOT an adoption agency and therefore does not facilitate any adoptions. Inclusion on our waiting child list does not constitute endorsement of a particular agency or country for adoption. 3.) What does “waiting children” mean? “Waiting children” are available for adoption through particular agencies and countries and waiting (generally in orphanages) for a family to adopt them. 4.) Where do the waiting children profiles come from? The profile information and photos on our waiting child list are given to us by agencies that facilitate adoptions and are trying to locate homes for their waiting children. All interested parties should follow up with the agency a specific child of interest is listed through. 5.) Are all children on the Project HOPEFUL waiting child list HIV+? Yes, unless they are part of a sibling group where some siblings are positive and others are negative. Some children may have other medical conditions in addition to HIV/AIDS. Any additional diagnosed medical conditions will be noted in a child’s profile. Project HOPEFUL only has information about children’s medical conditions that are provided to us by the placing agency or orphanage. Additional information may be present in the child’s file available through the agency. At times, additional medical conditions only become evident once the child is with their adoptive family and receiving additional medical care and intervention. 6.) What are the numbers located next to some of the children's names on the waiting child list? Some of the children listed are with an agency that uses a number next to the name as part of their internal code to signify which orphanage a child resides at. Children with the same number next to their name reside at the orphanage together. For countries or agencies allowing adoption of unrelated children at the same time, adopting more than one child from the same orphanage or region is much easier than adopting children from different orphanages/ regions. 7.) Why aren’t there specific country names for some of the children listed? Some agencies request that country names not be used when listing waiting children because the child’s country of origin is not comfortable with this information being disseminated publically. 8.) Why don’t all of the children have pictures? If a child does not have a picture posted, it is because the agency has said that it is not permissible to publically post pictures of children available for adoption. In some cases, the agency has given us pictures of the child to share privately with interested families, but in many cases, a family would need to go through the agency placing them to see pictures. 9.) Where do I find information about a child's age? A child's age is indicated by the birth year given in the age column. 10) What is required before I can begin reviewing detailed profile and medical information about a waiting child/ren? Most agencies require a family to have an approved Home Study (official document approving a family for adoption) before they will allow families to gain any more specific information about a waiting child other than their public profile. 11.) Will an agency "hold" a waiting child for me/my family while our home study is completed? Generally most agencies will NOT remove a child from a public waiting child list for a family that isn't "paper ready" and will allow other families who are paper ready to pursue adopting a child. This is because the priority is finding at-risk kids a family who can adopt them as soon as possible, which is in the best interests of the child. 12.) Are all the children on the waiting child list receiving antiretroviral (ARV) medications for the treatment of their HIV? No. The need for medication is determined by a physician overseeing the child’s care. Children with HIV in international settings who have access to medications are treated under World Health Organization (WHO) treatment guidelines, which differ from treatment guidelines in the U.S. and some other countries. Some children may not require medications at this time. Medical care can also vary based on resources available to the orphanages children reside at. Some children may not be receiving medications despite being in need of them. For more information regarding a specific child, Project HOPEFUL will direct interested parties to the adoption agency in charge of the child’s case. 13.) How often are antiretroviral medications taken? There are many different kinds of antiretroviral medications used to treat HIV and treatment can vary. The most common regimens use 2-3 medications taken together twice a day. 14.) How much do medications cost once a child is home with their adoptive family? Once a child is adopted, they are eligible to be covered under their parents’ medical insurance, as long as they are enrolled according to the plan’s guidelines. Insurance covers the costs of medical care needed by the child, including HIV care. The cost of medications will be determined by many factors and varies on a case by case basis. The best way to figure costs is to review your health insurance coverage. You can review co-pays for medications and determine whether or not your plan has tiers for certain drugs, looking up commonly used ARV medications on the medication formulary. Avert.org has a helpful table which lists the various drugs used to treat HIV for you to check against your insurance plan. Many drug companies offer prescription discount plans which can reduce the costs of their medications. Many of these can be found at this website. The Federal Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program also offers financial assistance for ARV medications through state public health departments and HIV community organizations. 15.) How can I discover if I/we will be approved to adopt? There is no instant approval process in adoption. But, the good news is it’s rare that an individual/family is not eligible to adopt at all. There are two initial phases of approval a family has to pass. First, prospective international adoptive parents must determine if they meet a sending country’s requirements for adoption. Each country which allows international adoptions reserves the right to enforce their own requirements for adoptions. This information is easily obtained through a quick internet search. Rainbow Kids has a resource by country HERE . A reputable adoption agency will never accept potential adoptive parents into their program and begin charging them fees unless they are confident the parent/s meet eligibility requirements for a country’s program. If you don't meet the criteria to adopt a child from one country, don't give up! Chances are you may be able to adopt a child from another country Whether adopting internationally or domestically, prospective adoptive parents must complete and receive an approved Home Study. This is conducted through a home study agency (which may or may not be the same as a family’s adoption agency) In the U.S., the home study agency or social worker must be from the applicant’s state. The Home Study document is the official document countries use to determine the acceptability of applicants prior to court proceedings for custody. The home study social worker is familiar with the U.S. and state requirements for approval of parents adopting internationally and documents that adoptive parents meet these criteria, in addition to capturing the parents’ motivations and resources for parenting adopted children.