AdoptionPolicyProposalGenericLetter

Adoption Policy Proposal Generic:

Author

Date

Etc…

REVISION HISTORY

Rev #

Date of Issue

Description

Originator

Reviewer

Approver

EXECUTIVE MANAGEMENT SUPPORT WILL BE OBTAINED IF NEEDED

Name

Division

Date Support Granted

Table of Contents

Proposal

Summary of Proposal

Overview

Reasons Why ______ Would Offer Adoption Benefits

Adoption Leave Support within Congress

Types of Adoption Leave

Types of Adoptions Typically Covered

Adoption Benefits and Taxes

Typical Company Plans

10.

Comparison Between Adoption Benefits and Maternity Benefits

at ______

11.

Summary

Appendix I – Partial List of US Employers Offering Adoption Benefits

Appendix II – Acknowledgements

1. Proposal

This document, a proposal to ______'s Human Resources department and to ______ executive management, proposes that ______ add adoption benefits for employees which are similar to benefits provided for biological parents; namely:

•

Comparable benefit to the non-occupational disability benefit for maternity leave

•

Increase reimbursement of adoption expenses from $______ to $5,000

This proposal seeks to present a strong case to justify the inclusion of these benefits to ______'s employee benefits package.

2. Summary of Proposal

In this document it is proposed that ______ provide to its employees an adoption benefit of paid leave to assist with leave associated with adoption of a child into the employee's family. ______ at present provides significant paid leave benefits through non-occupational disability to families for the birth of a child, including up to __ weeks of full pay and __ weeks of half pay. Generally, up to _ weeks before and _ weeks after birth for a regular delivery or _ weeks before and _ weeks after birth for a cesarean delivery are taken. If a child enters a family by adoption, however, the leave involved before the adoption (one to five weeks for international trips depending upon the country) and the very substantial leave necessary after the adoption (to address developmental/medical issues and to form healthy family attachments) are not provided as an adoption benefit. The employee must use vacation leave, take an unpaid leave of absence, or both.

In this document, it is also proposed that ______ increase to its employees the adoption assistance benefit from $______ to $5,000. ______ at present provides full coverage of medical expenses associated with childbirth. As the medical expenses of childbirth increases, this childbirth benefit increases. If a child enters the family by adoption, however, the very substantial expenses involved (typically $10,000 to $35,000), including all medical costs associated with the birth of the child, are not covered by medical or other insurance. ______ reimburses up to $______ in adoption expenses. The remaining expenses must be paid directly by the employee. The Federal law Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996 currently allows ______ to provide, as an employee benefit, up to $5,000 in tax-free expense reimbursement to assist with the material costs of building a family by adoption. By increasing the adoption assistance from $______ to $5,000, ______ takes full advantage of this Federal law.

The advantages of such benefits would be that they:

address a sizable gap in the present benefit structure;

are a cost-effective (because tax exempt) method of providing support to ______ employees at a time of substantial need;

encourage employees to consider this alternative method of building a family that is much less costly to the company than long-term utilization of specialized fertility treatments and their associated risks of premature and multiple births;

is a benefit likely to be much appreciated by employees as an available option, but actually utilized rarely enough so that it would not have large financial consequences for the company.

3. Overview

There are a growing number of employers in this country that offer some kind of adoption benefits to their employees (see Appendix I). Local employers with enhanced adoption benefits include: Dow Chemicals, Chevron, and US Department of Energy. A 1995 study of 1,050 employers by the benefits consulting firm Hewitt Associates found that about 23 percent offered adoption benefits, up from 12 percent in 1990. In some cases, the benefit is a financial reimbursement to cover some or all adoption costs. Adoption may be more than twice as expensive as birth, with costs for a typical adoption presently ranging from $10,000 to $35,000. In other cases, it is also a policy that allows for adoption leave (similar to maternity or paternity leave) so that the child and parents can have time to adjust to each other. It is important for parents and their adopted children to form the special attachment that parents and their biological children are able to form.

As adoption has gained in acceptance as a way to begin or expand a family, employees and employers have become more interested in adoption benefits. Many prospective parents find it very difficult to adopt without the support of their employers.

While maternity benefits are standard in most health care programs, adoption benefits have a long way to go, yet they are just as greatly needed. In addition to needing financial help, adoptive parents need to know that their employer is committed to family life for all families, and is willing to allow the time necessary for a child and parents to establish and build a healthy, loving relationship. There is a growing recognition that our work places should give family concerns a higher priority in order to keep valuable staff happy and productive, and allow them to achieve balance in their lives. Many companies, and ______ is considered being one of them, view employees with families as stable, reliable, hardworking assets. Unfortunately, however, biological families and adoptive families are sometimes treated quite differently where benefits are concerned.

4. Reasons Why ______ Would Offer Adoption Benefits

Equity: Two of the most compelling reasons for a company to offer benefits are equity and fairness. Employees who choose parenthood through adoption should receive benefits comparable to those who have children biologically. Chubb & Son Inc. recently increased their adoption assistance benefit to coincide with the increase in the medical expenses of birth parents. ______ has always provided excellent maternity benefits, but adopting parents also have certain needs that it is hoped ______ wants to help meet.

Low Cost: Since relatively few employees actually utilize adoption benefits, the cost to the company is low, assuring that cost containment need not be a concern. About 100,000 families in the United States adopt each year. Nationally, less than half of 1 percent of all employees whose employers offer adoption assistance actually use it. Michael McDermott, Senior Director of Human Resources, G. D. Searle & Co. in Skokie, Illinois states, "We have found this benefit to be very well received by our employees, and very cost-effective. We currently experience from two to six adoptions per year. I would endorse the adoption allowance to any employer contemplating it." Moreover, adoption benefits as proposed here offer ______ an "insurance policy" against high birth costs. They are, in fact, the lowest cost option of providing benefits for adding a family member to an employee family. Many couples contemplating adoption do so because of problems conceiving a child. Some couples choose adoption over sophisticated, expensive fertility treatments even though a fertility specialist may encourage them to continue treatment, and tell them they have a good chance of achieving a pregnancy. Some couples make the choice of adoption because the infertility treatment would result in long term risk of ovarian cancer from fertility drugs, and of high risk pregnancy due to the higher chances of miscarriage and the significantly higher odds of premature and multiple births. The emotional difficulties of undergoing infertility treatment, or of suffering repeated pregnancy losses, are other reasons couples turn to adoption. One need only consider the typical costs for premature births and multiple births to see what a "bargain" adoption benefits really are. However, employees who make the adoption choice are faced with a lack of benefits while employees who choose to take the risks inherent in fertility treatments are provided excellent benefit coverage even if complications and high medical costs occur as a result of their decision.

Good Will: The company receives a lot of good will and positive publicity for its sensitivity to its employees. In addition, workers tend to feel greater loyalty when given this equal consideration. Goodwill usually leads to a lower company turnover rate and higher employee retention.

Social Benefit: Children and families would be the beneficiaries of ______’s support of adoption, just as biological children and families have benefited from support throughout ______'s history. The benefits may make the difference in a decision to adopt, which may be particularly meaningful for the growing number of available children in foster care in the U.S. or in foreign countries. Everyone benefits from an adoption benefit plan: the community, the company, the employees and their adopted children.

Acceptance by Employers: More and more employers and companies are offering adoption benefits packages and many want to keep pace with their competitors and colleagues. In addition, legal actions have consistently supported the equity consideration. In fact, several employers have raised the value of their adoption benefits since their first offering. An executive from Xerox's Human Resource Department who adopted says, "As a personnel manager I was well aware of the benefit program and I knew that Xerox was extremely sensitive to adoption as a family option. The fact that they just increased their reimbursement proves that. They also gave me a leave of absence. I can't speak highly enough of management's commitment. It's there whether you adopt or have a baby biologically. The company doesn't just send you a reimbursement check, but a very nice personalized letter. It's an excellent benefit."

Acceptance by other ______ Employees: Many ______ employees were genuinely surprised that adoptive mothers at ______ do not currently enjoy the same paid maternity leave that biological mothers receive. Nearly all of them assumed that all employees were treated the same in this regard. There is large support and encouragement from other ______ employees in pursuing an adoption benefits policy. Many employees even asked if they could sign something to show their support. The strong feeling was that people who support family policies support them for all families, all parents, all employees. And most of them agreed that an adopted child is every bit a member of a family as a biological child.

5. Adoption Leave Support within Congress

Some companies provide adoption leave on an individual basis, at the supervisor's discretion. Often, adopting parents can use personal leave time when the child joins the family or they may use vacation time even though no formal adoption leave exists. With the passage of the Family and Medical Leave Act in 1992, employers with 50 or more employees, including the Federal Government and the Congress, must offer both male and female employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave upon the birth or adoption of a child. The employee is guaranteed his present job or one considered equivalent and the employer is required to continue health benefits during the leave period. However, in the interest of equity, adopting families should not be limited by provisions of the Family and Medical Leave Act if biological parents are also given paid maternity leave in addition to the unpaid leave provided by the Family and Medical Leave Act, which is the case at ______.

On February 3, 2005 in the US Senate, Senator Christopher Dodd from Connecticut introduced the Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act (bill S.282.IS). Representative Caroline Maloney of New York introduced a similar bill, HR 5625.IH, on June 15, 2006 in the House of Representatives. If passed, the Family and Medical Leave Expansion Act would provide federal employees paid parental leave for an adoption of a child. Representative Fortney Pete Stalk of California introduced the Paid Family and Medical Leave Act of 2005 (bill HR 3192) to the House of Representatives on June 30, 2005. This bill, if passed, would assure that employees be entitled to a total of twelve work weeks of paid leave during a twelve month period upon the birth or adoption of a child.

Some states that require employers to offer parental leave to adoptive parents include: Connecticut, District of Columbia, Maine, Massachusetts (female employees only), New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin. In addition to these states, Colorado and New York, while not mandating employers to provide parental leave, do require them to offer leave to adoptive parents if they offer it to biological parents. Kentucky's parental leave law specifically applies only to adoptive parents.

6. Types of Adoption Leave

Most companies will allow an employee to take unpaid leave. While companies may offer their employees either paid and/or unpaid leave, the leave may be listed under a heading other than adoption leave. Paid leave may be defined as: authorized time off, discretionary time, annual or paid personal leave, annual or all purpose time. The length of paid leave usually depends on the amount of leave time the employee has accrued. In some cases, the company sets a maximum duration of paid leave. Unpaid adoption leave may be considered personal leave, childcare leave, personal hardship leave, or medical leave. Most companies offer limits ranging from 2 weeks to 1 year, with the median at 6 months. Some companies, however, set no time limits, but prefer to be open or negotiable, depending on individual circumstances.

7. Types of Adoption Typically Covered

Some employers do not cover adoptions by stepparents, but among plans implemented more recently, the trend is toward including all adoptions. Also, some employers have an age limit on the adopted child that determines whether benefits will be paid. Most of those with age limits specify the child must be under either 16 or 18 years of age.

8. Adoption Benefits And Taxes

The Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996 passed on August 20, 1996. This law makes employer contribution of adoption expenses up to $5,000 non-taxable provided the adopting couples' adjusted gross income is $75,000 or less. This demonstrates the federal government's commitment to encouraging adoption and the provision of adoption benefits by employers. It also means that an employer-provided adoption benefit is very cost-effective and provides a high level of "bang for the buck" compared to other financial options (such as loans or outside jobs) that the employee might be forced to consider.

9. Typical Company Plans

Given the differences in the size and economics of companies, there is no single adoption benefit plan that fits all companies. Some companies offer only paid leave, some offer only some reimbursement of expenses, but the most progressive companies offer a combination of paid leave and reimbursement. Appendix I lists some companies in the U.S. who offer enhanced adoption benefits.

10. Comparison Between Adoption Benefits and Maternity Benefits at ______ (Note: customize with your company’s benefits)

While most companies recognize the need for fairness to all employees, adoption benefits have not even begun to keep pace with maternity benefits. Since regulations require that pregnancy be treated as any other disability, reimbursements through medical plans have risen dramatically. This has not been the case for adoptions, since an adoptive parent is not "disabled" by parenthood. Yet, there are companies that try to parallel maternity benefits by steadily increasing the adoption reimbursement and provide paid leave. At least one company, Time, Incorporated, bases its maximum adoption benefit on the latest average of pregnancy costs in the area.

Paid Leave

Female employees of ______ who give birth to a child receive paid time off through the non-occupational disability benefit. This benefit is dependant upon the employee’s years of accredited service. Generally, up to _ weeks before and _ weeks after birth for a regular delivery or _ weeks before and _ weeks after birth for a cesarean delivery are taken. During this time, none of her employee benefits are affected by the leave. These employees may then take paid vacation time if they wish. After paid vacation is used, they may take unpaid leave under the Family Medical Leave Act as long as their total paid and unpaid leave does not exceed twelve weeks. If an employee with at least 5 years of accredited service chooses to take only _ weeks paid leave, they keep whatever vacation time they have accrued to use at their discretion throughout the fiscal year for rest, recreation or travel to visit relatives. By taking maternity leave alone, a biological mother with 5 years of accredited service may have a maximum of __ weeks of non-occupational disability paid leave (_ weeks of non-occupational disability at full pay, __ weeks at half pay -- __ weeks full pay equivalent) without any negative impact to her salary or benefits whatsoever. For employees with __ years or more of accredited service, this benefit grows to a maximum of ___ weeks (__ weeks of non-occupational disability at full pay, __ weeks at half pay -- ___ weeks full pay equivalent).

In sharp contrast, a female employee of ______ who becomes a mother through adoption does not receive any non-occupational disability paid leave. She is required to exhaust all accrued vacation, and then may take a leave under the Family Medical Leave Act of up to twelve weeks. All salary is suspended during the leave under the Family Medical Leave Act. A mother through adoption must use vacation time, intended for rest and recreation away from work, as maternity leave, for a maximum of five weeks before her salary is severely impacted.

The argument that companies offer biological mothers a leave because childbirth requires a medical recovery, while adopting a child does not, is a faulty one. Perhaps it is more accurate to say that maternity leave is to provide new mothers the chance to attach with and breast-feed their new babies as much as it is for their own physical recovery. Granted, some new mothers do have a difficult recovery, but we all also know the new mother who was back in aerobics class just seven days after delivery! Certainly adoptive mothers who receive a new baby into their lives need and deserve the same chance to form a mother-baby attachment. It is true that adoptive mothers do not have a physical recovery, but they do lose sleep during a baby's sleepless nights, and do not have the advantages of attaching through breast feeding and physical contact with their baby from the moment of birth. The initial attachment period an adopted child shares with his or her new parents may be the most critical time in the child’s early development.

For example, if a family is adopting from Russia, their baby, half a world away, will have spent most, if not all, of her life in an orphanage or foster care hearing the Russian language. The couple will need to take two trips to Russia for a total of five weeks in order to complete the Russian obligations and paperwork. When they are finally united as a family, the time they spend together with their baby will be critically important to them and to her. Moreover, many newly adoptive mothers have stated that there is an emotional recovery after an adoption that is similar to the emotional recovery of mothers who give birth. An insightful analogy is that adding a family member is like adding an object to a mobile. At first the balance is upset, and it takes some time for the mobile to slow down and return to normal. These adjustments are faced by all families.

All companies of ______'s size must offer new mothers at least six weeks leave without jeopardy to that employee's job. The question is whether that leave is paid or unpaid; this is the company's decision. ______ provides non-occupational disability paid leave to female employees who deliver a child, _ weeks prior to _ weeks after the delivery; but adopting mothers receive an unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Table 9.1 illustrates the value of this benefit for an employee with 5 years of accredited service.

Employee with 5 Years of Accredited Service

_____ Employee Salary

_ Weeks Full Pay Benefit

__ Weeks Half Pay Benefit

Total Potential Pay Benefit

$20,000

$30,000

$40,000

$50,000

$60,000

$80,000

$100,000

Table 9.1: Non-Occupational Disability Paid Leave Benefits

Assistance

______ employees are offered two types of medical coverage, A and B. Employees with maternity benefits through ___ coverage pay $___ co-pay, and then only __% of their costs for having a child. ______ employees with ___ coverage pay $___ co-pay, and then only __%. The annual out-of-pocket limit is $____. All expenses over $____ are paid by ______ benefits.

According to Company Benefits, an estimated hospital stay between 3 to 5 days is $____. No cost information for various types of childbirth is provided by Company Benefits. By using the average total costs for various types of childbirths according to the Health Care Cost Estimator from BlueCross BlueShield, the two ______ health plan benefits compare as follows:

Healthcare Coverage

Average Total Hospital Costs

Employee Pays *

______ Benefits Pay

Cesarean Section w Complications

$16,660

Cesarean Section w/o Complications

$13,746

High Risk Cesarean Section w/o Complications

$16,898

Vaginal Delivery w Complications

$9,677

Vaginal Delivery w/o Complications

$8,505

* Includes co-pay and deductible

** Maximum annual out-of pocket limit

Table 9.2: Maternity Healthcare Benefits for Biological Mothers

The average delivery figures for multiple births could not be obtained, but because multiples are often born prematurely and require longer hospital care after they are born, costs for twins, triplets or quadruplets would undoubtedly be many times higher than the costs given above. Furthermore, the costs for multiple births cannot be contained. ______ benefits pay costs for premature births, multiple births or complications after a maximum out of pocket expense by the employee, with a lifetime maximum benefit of $___________.

If medical expenses and value of paid leave are added together, one gets a good view of ______'s generous maternity benefit for biological mothers. For example, let’s take a female employee with 5 years of accredited service and has a $40,000 salary. Her total potential benefit for a normal vaginal delivery without complications under the ___ coverage is $____ ($____ in company benefits-paid expenses and $____ in non-occupational disability leave). Even a female employee with the same scenario but earning only a $20,000 salary realizes a total benefit potential of $____ ($____ in company benefits-paid expenses and $____ in non-occupational disability leave) under the same circumstances. The more years devoted to Shell or the more complicated the childbirth, the more generous Shell’s maternity benefits for biological mothers are.

In sharp contrast, a female employee of ______ who becomes a mother through adoption receives a total of $______ in adoption benefits.

11. Summary

Adoption has become an accepted method of building a family. Employers sensitive to family issues recognize the importance of adoption benefits and the need for equitable employee treatment. Many employers find that offering monetary assistance and leave benefits creates good will and a sense of employee equity within the company, incurs minimal costs in the scheme of employee benefits, and creates a positive and "family-friendly" image. The sincere hope is that after reviewing the information in this proposal, ______ will seriously consider an adoption benefits plan including ten weeks of adoption paid leave and expense reimbursement increase to $5,000 for employees who adopt.

Appendix I

Partial List of US Employers Offering Adoption Benefits

The following table shows companies who offer enhanced adoption benefits to their employees. The table shows those who offer adoption assistance greater than $4000 and paid leave. The information is provided by the National Adoption Center.

Employer

Paid Leave

> $4,000 for single, sibling or special needs

AARP

ABB CE Nuclear Power

Advanta Corporation

Advocate Health Care

Aetna, Inc.

Ag Processing

Allstate Insurance Company

American International Group

American Management Systems

American Ref-fuel Company

Amgen, Inc.

Apex Management Group, The

Applied Communications, Inc.

Arthur Anderson LLP

A.W. Restaurants, Inc.

Autodesk, Inc.

Bank of America

Bell Atlantic

Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc.

Book of The Month Club, Inc.

Booz, Allen & Hamilton, Inc.

Borden, Inc.

Boston Scientific Corp.

Brentwood Services, Inc.

Bryn Mawr Rehab

Builders Square

Calvert Group, LTD

Calvin College

Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital

Channing L. Bete Co., Inc.

Chase Manhattan Corp.

Chevron Corporation

CIT Group Inc., The

Citizens Bank

CMP Publications

Coach Leatherware

Coca-Cola Company, The

Colgate-Palmolive Company

Employer

Paid Leave

> $4,000 for single, sibling or special needs

Conde Nast Publications, Inc.

Consolidated Rail Corporation

Coopers & Lybrand

Corning Incorporated

CSC Consulting & Systems Integration

DaimlerChrysler Corp.

Dakota State University

Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption

DDB Needham Worldwide (Chicago Division)

Deloitte & Touche

Delta Air Lines

Deutsche Bank

Dispatch Printing Company, The

Dominion Energy

Domino's Pizza

Dow Chemical Company, The

DuPage County, IL

DuPont

DuPont Merck Pharmaceutical Company

Duquesne Light Company

Eaton Corporation

Eddie Bauer

Elmhurst College

EMC Corporation

Ernst & Young

Eisenberg, Alan D., Attorney

Fannie Mae

Ferris, Baker, Watts, Inc.

Fidelity Investments

First Union Corporation

Flagstar Companies

Fleet Financial Group

FMC Corporation

Freddie Mac

Frito-Lay

Gallup Organization, The

Genentech, Inc.

General Accident Insurance

Glaxo Wellcome, Inc.

Grant Riverside Methodist Hospital

Gymboree Corp

Hanna Anderson

Harvard University

Hasbro, Inc.

Hennepin Parks

Hercules Inc.

Employer

Paid Leave

> $4,000 for single, sibling or special needs

Hewitt Associates

Hill, Holiday, Connors, Cosmopulos, Inc.

Hoffmann-LaRoche

Home Box Office

IBM Corporation

International Brotherhood of Teamsters

International Game Technology

Investors Fiduciary Trust Co.

John Hopkins University

Edward Jones

Kellogg Foundation, W.K.

Kmart Corporation

KPMG Peat Marwick LLP

Lehman Brothers, Inc.

LexisNexis

Lexmark International

Life Technologies, Inc.

Eli Lilly and Co.

Limited, Inc., The

Lincoln Financial Group

Little Caesar's

Loomis, Sayles & Company, LP

Lotus Development Corp.

LSI Logic Corporation

LucasFilm Ltd.

Marquette Bank, N.A./Pohlad Banking Group

Marquette Electronics, Inc.

Mattel, Inc.

MBNA America Bank, NA

McDonald's Corporation

Mentor Graphics

Mercedes-Benz of North America, Inc.

Merrill Lynch & Company, Inc.

Miami Herald, The

Microsoft, Inc.

Midamerican Energy Company

Millipore Corporation

Milton Hershey School

Monsanto Co.

Morgan, J.P.

Morrison & Foerster

Motorola

Musco Corp.

National Futures Association

National Life of Vermont

NationsBank

Employer

Paid Leave

> $4,000 for single, sibling or special needs

Nestle

Neuville Industries, Inc.

Newly Weds Foods, Inc.

Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Owens Corning

Patagonia, Inc.

Penn Virginia Corporation

PepsiCo

The Perkin Elmer Corporation

Pfizer, Inc.

Phoenix Home Life Mutual Life Insurance Co.

Post-Newsweek Stations, Inc.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Primavera Systems, Inc.

Procter and Gamble

Providence Hospital

Prudential Insurance Company of America

Public Service Electric & Gas (PSE&G)

Quad/Graphics

QuickTrip Corp.

Ravenswood Health Care Corporation

Rex Healthcare

Ridgeview, Inc.

St. Mary's Medical Center (MN)

St. Paul Companies, The

St. Raphael Healthcare System (CT)

Salomon Brothers Inc.

Sara Lee Corporation

SAS Institute

Joseph E. Seagram & Sons, Inc.

Sequent Computer Systems, Inc.

ServiStar Corporation

7-Eleven Stores/The Southland Corp.

Shaw Industries

Shipley Company

Silicon Graphics

Sisters of Charity Health Systems

Smith Barney

Smith College

Spiegel, Inc.

Stanley Works, The

State Farm Insurance

State of Montana

State of North Dakota

State of North Carolina

State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio

Employer

Paid Leave

> $4,000 for single, sibling or special needs

The Stride Rite Corp

Subaru of America

Superior Coffee and Foods

Tandem Computers, Inc.

Texas Instruments

Tom's of Maine, Inc.

Toshiba America Information Systems, Inc.

Trans-Financial

Triconex Corporation

TRW, Inc.

United Parcel Service

United States Surgical Corporation

Universal Studios, Inc.

University of Oklahoma

University of South Carolina

University of Wyoming

USAA

US Department of Energy

Valassis Communications, Inc.

Viacom

Wal-Mart Corporation

Warner-Lambert Company

Wendy's International, Inc.

Whirlpool Corporation

Woodman of the World Life Insurance

WFD, Inc.

World Financial Properties.

Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co.

Appendix II

Acknowledgements

This proposal includes material from a similar, successful proposal by Melissa Sherlock to her employer, ACI of Omaha, Nebraska. Other sources include the Library of Congress, BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina Health Care Cost Estimator; Holt International Children's Services, Eugene, Oregon; the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse report Adoption Benefits: Employers as Partners in Family Building: NAIC Online Publications, Washington, D.C.; and Hewitt Associates report Work and Family Benefits Provided by Major U.S. Employers: Hewitt Associates, Lincolnshire, Illinois.