Every child deserves a loving, caring family, including children in other countries who have been orphaned. The adoption community-waiting families, adoptive families, adopted adults, licensed agencies, faith communities, child advocates, and support organizations-believes that connecting children with families provides the best opportunity for many of these children to live healthy, cared-for, productive lives. There are millions of children waiting, many dying, and most aging out of orphanages, with little hope for the future. And there are many thousands of families in the U.S. waiting to offer themselves to a child needing a family.

Orphaned children waiting for loving, caring families is not a foreign problem; it is an international crisis. The tragedy of the large number of unparented children is one of the biggest human rights crises in the world. But this problem is not without solutions. One of the biggest barriers preventing children in other countries from finding families in the U.S. has become our own federal bureaucracy.

National Council for Adoption has taken a leadership role in seeking solutions, providing a voice for orphaned children, as well as voicing the frustrations and concerns of the child-focused communities that are advocating for all children waiting for a family. Read this recent OpEd piece written by NCFA CEO, Chuck Johnson, and published in USA Today entitled, Why does the State Department make it hard to adopt children from other countries?,  as well as Elizabeth Bartholet's OpEd, Where Is the Outrage Over the Institutionalized Children Denied Adoptive Homes?, published in Morning Consult.

Every voice counts, including your voice. Please reach out to your members of Congress and share your concerns and ideas for helping more children to find waiting families in the U.S. or other ways you believe the U.S. can impact the international orphan crisis.

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