Open Letter to President Donald Trump and Members of Congress
March 1, 2025
The Honorable Donald J. Trump
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500
Members of the United States Congress
United States Capitol
Washington, DC 20510
RE: Request to Expand Support for Adoption and Foster Care Systems
Dear President Trump and Members of Congress:
I am writing regarding the recent executive order expanding access to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment. While I appreciate this step to support Americans struggling with infertility, I strongly believe this initiative should be accompanied by a parallel expansion of support for our nation's adoption and foster care systems.
Our nation has thousands of children in foster care and other institutional settings who desperately need stable, loving homes. These children—already born and in need—are frequently placed in suboptimal living situations due to inadequate funding, insufficient oversight, and a shortage of qualified caregivers. As we invest in helping Americans build families through IVF, we have an equal moral obligation to properly care for the children already in our system.
I respectfully request that your administration and Congress expand support for adoption and foster care with the same commitment demonstrated toward IVF access. This expansion should include:
- Improving living conditions for children in foster care and institutional settings
- Better training and support for foster and adoptive parents
- More robust oversight to prevent abuse within the system
- Enhanced programs to help older foster children transition to adulthood
- Incentives to encourage adoption, including increased tax benefits
Exemplary institutions like the Milton Hershey School in Pennsylvania demonstrate what is possible when we properly invest in children who lack traditional family support. This school has evolved into a model institution providing quality education, housing, and support services to children from difficult circumstances. Their standard operating procedures and comprehensive approach to child welfare should serve as a baseline for how we care for children in need throughout our country.
By expanding support for adoption and foster care alongside IVF access, we could implement meaningful reforms that:
- Establish more residential educational facilities modeled after the Milton Hershey School
- Reduce administrative barriers to adoption
- Provide enhanced tax incentives for families who adopt
- Modernize group homes to meet higher standards of care and education
- Fund counseling and support services for biological parents struggling to care for their children
- Improve screening and training for adoptive parents and caregivers
- Increase compensation and reduce caseloads for social workers in child welfare
These investments would yield immediate benefits for thousands of vulnerable children while strengthening families and communities across America. A comprehensive approach to family formation that supports both assisted reproduction and adoption demonstrates our commitment to American families in all their forms.
I believe this expansion of priorities would reflect our shared American values of caring for the most vulnerable among us while respecting the desires of those who wish to have biological children. It would demonstrate a commitment to supporting family formation through multiple avenues.
Thank you for your consideration of this request. I look forward to seeing meaningful action to address both infertility challenges and the critical needs within our adoption and foster care systems.
Respectfully submitted,
Killian H. Yates
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