By Natalie Zarowny
nzarowny@cbs4qc.com
For mothers who are feeling overwhelmed with the stress of
having a newborn child, there are options.
In Illinois,
a mother can anonymously take her newborn to a safe haven if the baby is thirty
days old or younger.
In Iowa,
a mother can do the same if the infant is fourteen days old or younger.
It's called the Safe Haven Law.
But where you can drop off a child differs slightly in each
state.
In Illinois,
fire departments and police stations as well as hospitals will take an infant
if there's no sign of abuse or neglect.
In Iowa
it's just hospitals or health care facilities.
So what's a social worker's advice for a mother feeling like
she's run out of options?
"I strongly encourage her to seek out support, and I
want for her to know hospitals will offer her that support," said Joan
Blair-Dick, social worker at Genesis Health System.
The law was created to help parents who might be under
severe emotional distress or not able to provide basic needs for their baby.
For more information on safe haven laws where you live, call
the number on the screen.
