What the Data Says: Adoption and Kids in Foster Care
In 2014, 107,916 children in America’s foster care system were waiting to be adopted. While nearly half of these children were adopted within two years, 29% waited three or more years to experience this milestone.
Among kids in America’s child welfare system who were adopted in 2014, 57% were adopted by their foster parents, 32% by a relative, 29% by a non-relative and 2% by a stepparent. Nationally, the number of adoptions by relatives has steadily increased since 2011.
At the state level, the frequency of adoptions by relatives varies widely. In Hawaii, 56% of children in foster care were adopted by relatives compared to just 1% in Massachusetts, Alabama and Kentucky.
Visit the KIDS COUNT Data Center for more child welfare data at the national and state level:
Children in foster care waiting for adoption
Children in foster care waiting for adoption by age group
Children in foster care waiting for adoption by race and Hispanic origin
Children in foster care waiting for adoption by amount of time waiting
Children in child welfare system who have been adopted
Children in child welfare system who have been adopted by age group
Children in child welfare system who have been adopted by race and Hispanic origin
Children in child welfare system who have been adopted by pre-adoptive relationship with adoptive parents
