Support & Resources

Adoptive Family Resources

All parents at times need help and resources to parent their children. Different families need different kinds of support, depending upon where the family lives, the family’s lifestyle, how the family deals with life’s issues, and the nature of the challenges of the child who was adopted. Many people turn to family, friends, religious communities, and neighbors in times of crisis—but there is other help out there. Creating a support network is vital to withstand the pressures put on a family when adopting a child with special needs. Many families think that love will be enough, only to find out that although it is a critically important ingredient, many other things are also needed to truly help children become successful adults. The resource section of the website is good information for any parent, but is geared towards the issues an adoptive family may face.

Important Tax Information
Parents who have adopted a child from public foster care who receives Subsidized Adoption Medicaid Assistance should expect to receive 1095 tax form in the mail from the Utah State Department of Health in 2016. Beginning with the 2015 tax year, families are required to report health insurance coverage on their federal tax return or they may incur a tax penalty for being uninsured. The 1095 form will verify the months your adopted child recieved Medicaid health insurance coverage. If you have questions, please contact Department of Health at (866) 608-9422

We publish a quarterly newsletter featuring information about adoption and adoption stories. View our most recent newsletter and previous newsletters here.

View dates for upcoming training and classes as well as adoptive family events.

Adoption assistance was instituted in the 1980s to encourage families to adopt children who were languishing in the states’ foster care systems and who were not likely to be adopted unless families were given some financial assistance to help them meet these children’s special needs.

The incidence rate of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is unusually high among the U.S. foster care population. It is estimated that almost 70 percent of the children in foster care are affected by prenatal alcohol exposure in varying degrees.

Private insurance, in conjunction with your Medicaid card, will provide you with access to mental health services. Mental health agencies are developing specialists to deal with specific adoption issues.

Occupational therapy (OT) can help your child engage in the activities they need and want to do. To learn more about occupational therapy watch this video. There are many reasons a child may benefit from occupational therapy. All children are different and develop skill sets at their own pace. It is not uncommon for children to struggle with some of these skills at some point during their development, however when these challenges significantly impact your child’s ability to participate in daily activities it may be beneficial to seek a referral for occupational therapy services.

Everyone needs an occasional break from stressful situations. Most parents do not schedule adequate time away from their children who have special needs out of embarrassment or feelings of inadequacy. But in fact, taking time out for yourself is HEALTHY!

Children who have experienced sexual abuse will probably need help in learning new behaviors and ways of relating. Here are some of the behaviors and emotions you may see expressed by your child.

There are thousands of adoption resources available for families, professionals, and people who were adopted. Many books have been read and recommended by our staff.

Utah law permits adult adoptees the right to obtain non-identifying, detailed genetic and social history with regard to their biological family. Adoptive parents should receive the state forms entitled "Birth Father's (and/or) Birth Mother's Non-identifying Information for Adoption Registry" at the time of finalization.

Tax Information

Transracial or transcultural adoption means placing a child who is of one race or ethnic group with adoptive parents of another race or ethnic group. In the United States these terms usually refer to the placement of children of color or children from another country with Caucasian adoptive parents.

Learn more about the Utah Adoption Act on the Utah State Legislature page.