Over the past generation, the adoption rights movement in the United States has gained in both strength and political savvy. Although there are no accurate national statistics on the number of adoptees who seek out the identity of their birth parents, the media in recent years has increased public awareness about adoption-related issues ranging from psychological ramifications of life without blood tie to embattled legislative efforts to unseal adoption records.
Some adoptees feel the need to inspect their original birth certificates and will hire a Bucks County divorce lawyer to help. Others simply want current medical histories. Whatever the motivation, the resulting confrontation fits the cloak of confidentiality surrounding the adoption process against what some adoptees view to be their fundamental right -- and emotional need to know -- their biological origins.
At the termination of adoption proceedings, the entire record is sealed and withheld from inspection except on an order of court granted upon cause shown under Section 2905(a). Any disclosure with respect to the identity of birth parents may be made only with their consent. Absent such consent, the disclosure of general information may be made only if such disclosure protects the anonymity of the birth parents under Section 2905(b).
Under 28 Pa. Code Section 1.49(b), a birth parent may consent to the disclosure of his or her identity by filing a Biological Parent Registration Identification Form with the Division of Vital Records of the Department of Health. Forms may be requested at 1-877-PA-Health.