A total of 850 declarations for foreign adoptions have been granted by the Adoption Board in the past five years and 14 have been refused, according to the Minister of State for Health, Ms Mary Hanafin. A further 1,009 couples are awaiting assessment by health boards for foreign adoptions.
In a reply to a written question, she told Mr Dan Neville (FG, Limerick West) the waiting list had fallen from 1,056 to 1,009 over the summer and this had cut the list "for the first time in some considerable time".
Of the 1,009 waiting at the end of September, 890 were awaiting a first assessment while 119 were waiting for a second assessment. Ms Hana fin said that despite more applicants, the waiting list had fallen even in the health board areas with the longest waiting time.
Couples in the Eastern Regional Health Authority region have an average waiting time for social worker assessment of 24 to 36 months for a first assessment while in the Mid-Western Health Board area, the waiting time is 18 to 20 months.