Vol. 550 No. 5
110 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Health and Children if he has satisfied himself with the long delay in deciding inter-country adoption cases; if he will ensure that an applicant has a choice when it comes to the psychiatrist he or she chooses, where a psychiatric report is required; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [9600/02]
I am very concerned about delays being experienced by applicants for inter-country adoption assessment. Under the Child Care Act, 1991, each health board has responsibility for the provision of an adoption service in its area. Additional funding of €2,101,000 or £1,655,000 has been provided over the last four years to reduce the time spent by couples on the waiting lists for inter-country adoption. I outlined to the House yesterday, 20 March 2002, in Question No. 350, the detailed measures which are being taken in this regard.
Under the Adoption Act, 1991, the Adoption Board has responsibility for making declarations of eligibility and suitability to adopt a child from overseas, having regard to an assessment report carried out by an Irish health board or registered adoption society. Currently it takes the Adoption Board approximately eight to ten weeks to process first time applications and six to eight weeks to process second time applications, provided there are no outstanding queries in respect of the application.
As regards medical reports I am advised that in some instances the Adoption Board may decide to seek the opinion of an independent medical or health professional. In such cases, the Adoption Board selects a suitable person to give an opinion on the case and the applicant is then invited to attend the individual concerned for examination. If an applicant had a particular difficulty with the independent medical or health professional selected by the board, their views would be considered by the board.
