WarmLittleDiamond
02-04-2002, 12:04 PM
I could have put this in the LGBT forum, but I thought more people would see this here. :)
Monday February 4 10:23 AM ET
Pediatric Group Endorses Adoption by Gay Parents
By Merritt McKinney
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children of gay and lesbian couples deserve to have both their parents recognized by the law, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). To that end, the group has issued a policy statement in favor of adoption rights for the second parent, or ``coparent'' in same-sex relationships.
A review of published studies indicates that children with homosexual parents ``can have the same advantages and same expectations for health, adjustment and development as can children whose parents are heterosexual,'' according to the group.
The policy statement grew out of concern for the needs of children, according to Dr. Ellen C. Perrin, a professor of pediatrics at Tufts New England Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Perrin serves as a consultant to the AAP's Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health committee, which drafted the policy.
``Those children are our patients,'' she said. ``Children's families are very important to their well-being.''
More and more children are being raised by same-sex couples, but there is a gap in the legal and social recognition of these situations, according to Perrin. The aim of the policy, she said, is ``to close that gap.''
The statement ``supports the right of children to have continuity in nurturing,'' Perrin said.
In the statement, the AAP committee notes that in most cases, a child in a same-sex household has only one legal parent--the child's biological or adoptive parent. The other parent in the family, the second or coparent, is in a kind of parental limbo. He or she takes part in the child's upbringing but does not usually have legal rights or obligations.
Laws to allow second-parent adoption have been enacted in some states and considered by others, the report states. The committee points out that legislation that makes same-sex relationships the legal equivalent of marriage, such as Vermont's civil union law, can also provide security to children in same-sex families.
But in most cases, second-parent adoptions are handled on a case-by-case basis, the report indicates.
``It is important that a broad ethical mandate exist nationally that will guide the courts in providing the necessary protection for children through coparent adoption,'' the policy states.
According to the AAP statement, second parents should maintain parental rights and responsibilities if the first parent dies or becomes ill.
And if the couple separates, coparents should have the right to custody and visitation, the report notes. Both parents should be responsible for the support of the child if the couple separates.
The policy also takes into account the health needs of children. Coparent adoption, the policy states, would ensure that a child is eligible for health insurance through both parents. Both parents should have equal rights to consent to medical care for a child and to make important decisions about the child, including health and education decisions.
Allowing second-parent adoption would also allow a child access to entitlements such as Social Security survivors' benefits in the case of the death of either parent, the policy states.
Perrin said she hopes that the statement will bolster the cases of same-sex couples who are trying to establish coparent status.
``This policy statement will serve as a support for them in court,'' she said.
Another goal of the policy, Perrin said, is to inform the wider public about the situation of these families, who ``are in most ways like every other family. The only difference is that the parents are not of opposite sexes.''
Perrin pointed out that ``there are absolutely no credible scientific data'' that children reared by same-sex couples are at any disadvantage compared with children whose parents are heterosexual.
Same-sex couples are no better or worse parents than opposite-sex couples, Perrin said. ``They are just parents,'' she said, who have the same concerns about their children's safety and nurturing.
Perrin said she hopes other parents will consider what a disadvantage it would be for them if one of two parents raising a child did not have legal security.
SOURCE: Pediatrics 2002;109:339-340.
Monday February 4 10:23 AM ET
Pediatric Group Endorses Adoption by Gay Parents
By Merritt McKinney
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children of gay and lesbian couples deserve to have both their parents recognized by the law, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). To that end, the group has issued a policy statement in favor of adoption rights for the second parent, or ``coparent'' in same-sex relationships.
A review of published studies indicates that children with homosexual parents ``can have the same advantages and same expectations for health, adjustment and development as can children whose parents are heterosexual,'' according to the group.
The policy statement grew out of concern for the needs of children, according to Dr. Ellen C. Perrin, a professor of pediatrics at Tufts New England Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. Perrin serves as a consultant to the AAP's Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health committee, which drafted the policy.
``Those children are our patients,'' she said. ``Children's families are very important to their well-being.''
More and more children are being raised by same-sex couples, but there is a gap in the legal and social recognition of these situations, according to Perrin. The aim of the policy, she said, is ``to close that gap.''
The statement ``supports the right of children to have continuity in nurturing,'' Perrin said.
In the statement, the AAP committee notes that in most cases, a child in a same-sex household has only one legal parent--the child's biological or adoptive parent. The other parent in the family, the second or coparent, is in a kind of parental limbo. He or she takes part in the child's upbringing but does not usually have legal rights or obligations.
Laws to allow second-parent adoption have been enacted in some states and considered by others, the report states. The committee points out that legislation that makes same-sex relationships the legal equivalent of marriage, such as Vermont's civil union law, can also provide security to children in same-sex families.
But in most cases, second-parent adoptions are handled on a case-by-case basis, the report indicates.
``It is important that a broad ethical mandate exist nationally that will guide the courts in providing the necessary protection for children through coparent adoption,'' the policy states.
According to the AAP statement, second parents should maintain parental rights and responsibilities if the first parent dies or becomes ill.
And if the couple separates, coparents should have the right to custody and visitation, the report notes. Both parents should be responsible for the support of the child if the couple separates.
The policy also takes into account the health needs of children. Coparent adoption, the policy states, would ensure that a child is eligible for health insurance through both parents. Both parents should have equal rights to consent to medical care for a child and to make important decisions about the child, including health and education decisions.
Allowing second-parent adoption would also allow a child access to entitlements such as Social Security survivors' benefits in the case of the death of either parent, the policy states.
Perrin said she hopes that the statement will bolster the cases of same-sex couples who are trying to establish coparent status.
``This policy statement will serve as a support for them in court,'' she said.
Another goal of the policy, Perrin said, is to inform the wider public about the situation of these families, who ``are in most ways like every other family. The only difference is that the parents are not of opposite sexes.''
Perrin pointed out that ``there are absolutely no credible scientific data'' that children reared by same-sex couples are at any disadvantage compared with children whose parents are heterosexual.
Same-sex couples are no better or worse parents than opposite-sex couples, Perrin said. ``They are just parents,'' she said, who have the same concerns about their children's safety and nurturing.
Perrin said she hopes other parents will consider what a disadvantage it would be for them if one of two parents raising a child did not have legal security.
SOURCE: Pediatrics 2002;109:339-340.