U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, R-AL, on Friday joined 103 federal lawmakers to urge President Biden “to stand up for families facing the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) decision to end international adoptions for people without Chinese family ties.”

In AugustChina’s Foreign Ministry announced it would no longer send Chinese children abroad for adoption as China faces a sharply declining birth rate. Only foreigners adopting the children or stepchildren of blood relatives in China are exempt from the new policy.

The policy raises concerns about the future of hundreds of Chinese children who were already in the process of being adopted by American families when the policy change was announced. According to Senator Britt, at least 16 of these families are from Alabama.

“We ask that you act in the best interests of these children and families by urging the PRC to fulfill and respect the country’s commitment,” the lawmakers’ statement read. letter to President Biden.

“American families who have been matched with their adopted children are prepared to meet their long-term medical and emotional needs and give them the love and care they need,” he continues. “Many of these children know that they have a home that, in many cases, has been prepared for their arrival since families have been informed that they are matched and moving forward in the adoption process.

Between 1999 and 2023, American parents adopted more than 80,000 Chinese children, representing 29 percent of all overseas adoptions in the United States

However, the COVID-19 pandemic caused China to suspend international adoptions in 2020, and no Chinese children were sent to the United States for adoption until 2023. According to the State Department, only 16 children were adopted in China last year.

China’s policy shift comes amid a demographic crisis caused by a decades-old policy that prevented couples in the country from having more than one child. The one-child policy was changed in 2015, when the Chinese government announced that married couples could have two children – this number increased further in 2021, with Chinese couples now allowed to have three children.

Even with these eased restrictions, China’s birth rate has continued to decline, creating a rapidly aging population and shrinking workforce that threaten the country’s economic and social stability. Today, China has turned to stopping foreign adoptions to combat its population decline. Other policies, such as strengthening maternity leave and tax deductions for families, have also been implemented by the Chinese government in an attempt to boost population growth.

China may still choose to conduct adoptions for families in certain countries, according to a recent State Department advisory. Britt and his colleagues called on President Biden to ensure that this is the case for candidates in the United States.