Adoptees press states for access to their original birth certificates

Peggy Klappenberger of Crownsville, Maryland, has a little game she plays with her two teenage sons. Every time she drives by the hospital where they were born, she points to the window of the room where their birth took place. She makes a point of telling them, over and over, that they are seeing the building where they came into the world.

It may seem like a harmless quirk, but there’s a reason it’s so important to her: Klappenberger doesn’t know the name of the hospital where she was born. She doesn’t know her original name, either.

When Klappenberger was adopted as an infant, she received a new birth certificate with her new name and the names of her adoptive parents. She’s never seen her original birth certificate, because the state sealed it after her birth mother relinquished her.

She’s intent on getting that certificate — the one that identified her for the first 5 months of her life. While she has been able to track down some information about her origins, seeing the actual document is important to her; it will show her the name of the hospital, her birth parents’ names and her original name. But Maryland and most other states make it difficult, if not impossible, for adoptees to see their original certificates.

Nine states allow adoptees over 18 or 21 unrestricted access to their sealed birth records, according to the American Adoption Congress, an interest group. In 19 states and Washington, D.C., the records are sealed and cannot be accessed without a court order. The rest have limited access.

This year, lawmakers in about a dozen states considered bills that would make it easier for adoptees to see their original birth certificates. Legislation in Florida and Texas would provide unrestricted access. Texas’ bill is still under consideration, but Florida’s is hanging by a thread. Other state bills would allow access with some restrictions.

Opponents argue that opening original birth certificates to adoptees violates the rights of birth parents who may not want their identities revealed. In some states with open access, birth parents can file a “veto” petition with the state, saying they prefer to remain anonymous. Sociological research shows, however, that an overwhelming majority of birth mothers are open to being contacted.

Modern DNA science, social media and the internet have made it possible for Klappenberger and many other adoptees to collect information on their birth parents. In many states, there is a “confidential intermediary” law that allows adoptees seeking information on their birth parents to contact an intermediary, who is generally a state-employed social worker. The intermediary then reaches out to the birth parent or parents, who can decide whether to get in touch with their biological child.

Klappenberger’s birth mother sent back word that she did not wish to be contacted. But according to Klappenberger, the conversation with the intermediary revealed a little bit of information — enough that she was able to check some records and come up with a pretty good idea of her birth mother’s identity. Klappenberger then used an at-home DNA test kit to confirm her suspicions. She also found a relative of her birth father who told her he had died.

So, with all that information, why does Klappenberger still want her original birth certificate?

“As an adoptee, even if you have a terrific family — and I do — at the heart of adoption is loss,” she said in a phone interview. “The very first thing that happened to me when I was born was the loss of my birth mother. The state of Maryland telling me that I am not allowed to see the record of my very own birth — they are telling me I don’t matter, and I’ve already had to battle the feelings that I don’t matter my whole life.”