[shy_bear]

ok, we are looking at adopting two girls age 13, they are twins. They are legally free. We are confused even though the subsidy was explained to us. We were told we do not get foster care reimbursement for them. Before they move into our home we will sit down and negoitate the adoption subsidy. We were also told we might qualify for some upfront money to set them up with beds, clothes, etc.

My husband is very concerned. We pay our bills, live nicely, but were not planning on having two teenagers so soon in life. We have two other kids who are young and we are a single income family. So how do we know what is fair? It appears that $328 is the max for a child their age. That does not seem like alot. What should we be asking? Do we consult a lawyer first?

[crick]

CO is usually pretty good about their subsidy amounts. Depends on the county though, of course in addition to the special needs of the child/ren being adopted.

You might try calling the below person for some direct answers to your questions to see what amounts are like from county to county.
Sharen Ford
Department of Human Services (DHS)
1575 Sherman Street
Denver, CO 80203-1714
Phone: 303-866-3197
Fax: 303-866-5563
E-mail: sharen.ford@state.co.us

You might also ask about the level of special needs for the girls. Being siblings adds to that factor, meaning they want the girls placed together and that creates more financial hardship. Since they are also coming out of a group home or RTC, if memory serves me right?, I would be sure to discuss their future medical/counselling needs. It's very hard to find therapists that take medicaid, at least I've found that to be true in my area. (Douglas County)

[ajjhmf]

Crick covered your question very well, as usual. I just wanted to add something.

An adoption subsidy can be many things. Once the child's adoption is finalized, the state no longer holds any financial responsibility for the child as that now falls to the parent. It is very crucial during the negotiation stage to make sure your subsidy agreement is going to cover everything. In addition to a monthly stipend, many kids are also covered by state medicaid cards. Also, you can have 'futures' written into your agreement. For example, covering any treatment the child may need inpatient or outpatient for known and sometimes unknown issues. Many kids who have spent time in inpatient treatment (ie. an RTC), will return and this is rarely covered by a medicaid card and at $10,000 a month is can easily break a family financially.

I remember you saying these girls are currently in an RTC placement. I would get all the information before you move forward with this placement. An RTC placement is a serious thing and kids don't just go there for little things. They have major behaviors that prevent them from living safely in a typical family environment. The state would much rather spend less money on a foster home that a hospitalization. Something about these girls prevented them from being in a home. Something required them to have 24 hour a day supervision and care. Make sure you know what that is. Talk to former foster families. Don't take the states word for it that the families just couldn't handle it. Talk to their doctor and therapists now, before you make a decision.

You also said you have two small children in the home already? I would consider whether or not you feel you can handle this if things go bad. Can you keep your other children safe? I hate to be the one to say this, but caseworkers don't always give us the full picture on these kids. Someone else on the boards (Bostonbeagle) is currently dealing with criminal charges due to a false abuse complaint from a child she took out of an RTC placement. Please, get all the information you can before running into this. It can be very exciting when you meet potential kids, but it's best to take a step back and examine things before getting in over your head.

Just my 2 cents,
Jenny

[shy_bear]

Thanks for ya'lls help. I feel like we are the blind leading the blind!! We are so confused as to what to do. We met the girls therapist, she had brought them to the adoption party in which we met them. She had nothing but good things to say about them. We asked her and the adoption worker if they felt the girls were ok to be in a home with younger kids and they both said yes. We called the worker on Monday morning and found out she is out of the office till tomorrow. I will be calling back then. This is SO much harder then when we adopted our girls as infants. I want to trust myself, but then I worry that I will make the wrong choice and my girls will suffer!!!!!!

[hotspice58]

How did this turn out? Was there any type of transition period, where the twins spent weekends?