Roe v. Wade reversal may be boon for families seeking to adopt

The Supreme Court’s decision overturning Roe v. Wade could end up being an answered prayer — for gay couples who want kids, women struggling with infertility, and would-be single moms, an expert told The Post.

“This ruling could easily double the number of infant adoptions we see in America,” said Nicole Witt, a Florida adoption consultant who has helped unite more than 750 adoptive families with newborns over the last 18 years.

“It’s not going to be hundreds of thousands of babies,” she said. “But it’s absolutely going to be a significant help for families who are seeking to adopt.”

Up to 2 million would-be parents in the US hope to adopt an American-born child in any given year, according to the Adoption Network Law Center.

But in recent years, few American babies – just 20,000 annually – have been voluntarily relinquished to adoptive parents.

Widespread access to abortion has suppressed the number of adoptable babies for decades, and studies show that 91% of mothers who carry unplanned pregnancies to term choose parenting over adoption.

“We don’t know how many of those mothers are in states where access to abortion will be restricted,” Witt said. “But if you take 9% of them, it’s going to be a big number.”

At the same time, rising infertility and the wide acceptance of same-sex marriage has boosted demand for adoption-eligible newborns, Witt said.

Get The Post’s latest updates following the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Many of the states planning to impose tight abortion restrictions already encourage adoption with laws favoring prospective parents, such as anti-revocation rules that make it difficult for birth mothers to change their minds.

That means states like Florida, Texas, and Mississippi could end up placing thousands of babies a year with would-be parents across the country.