The Oklahoma Disability Law Center is interested in talking to parents who have had to give up custody of their child to receive services. A survey by NAMI found that 23% of the parents surveyed were told that they had to relinquish custody of their child in order to obtain services.

Parents may, at times, feel over-whelmed by the responsibility of locating and providing services for their child with a disability. When this happens, they become vulnerable to considering giving up their child to the state, and they sign away their parental rights to obtain services that are only available to children in state custody, or on the belief that this is the best way to obtain services needed by their child. Due to current policies of permanency planning, placing a child in state custody will quickly result in the child being adopted and the parents' rights lost forever.

If you or someone you know has had to place their child in state custody to receive services, especially if the parent made the decision under duress or with false encouragement, Kayla Bower with the Oklahoma Disability Law Center would like to know about it. You may contact her at the Oklahoma Disability Law Center's Oklahoma City location by phone at 525-7755 or 800/880-7755, or by email at kbower1@flash.net