Officials investigate US adoptions

A DELEGATION from the Adoption Authority have visited the US to examine “a number of concerns” about adoptions between Ireland and the US, in particular from Florida.

Florida is the most popular state for Irish people who wish to adopt children from the US. Five children have been adopted from there this year. However, issues have been raised about adoption practices in the state for some time.

In particular, these have centred on the circumstances around the securing of consent from natural mothers to the adoption, and the issue of subsidiarity — where adoption is examined only after all other options for the care of the child within his or her country of origin have been explored.