Home / Crime and Justice / Adoptees Trapped in Troubled Teen Industry
Adoptees Trapped in Troubled Teen Industry
28 Apr
Summary
- Adoptees comprise 25-40% of residential treatment center residents.
- Centers profit up to $20,000/month, often misdiagnosing RAD.
- Children face abuse, neglect, and even death in these facilities.
A significant number of adopted children, comprising an estimated 25-40% of residents, are being placed in for-profit residential treatment centers, a practice critics liken to a "shadow orphanage system." These facilities often market themselves to adoptive parents seeking solutions for behavioral issues, frequently misdiagnosing children with Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) and charging as much as $20,000 per month. However, experts contend that most teenagers in these programs do not have RAD, and the treatments offered are ineffective or even harmful.
Investigations reveal disturbing conditions within these centers, including instances of violence, chaos, self-harm, and sexual abuse. Children report being subjected to strip searches, regular restraints, and punishments like manual labor, with communication severely limited and monitored. Despite promises of safety and healing, some children have died in these facilities. The industry, driven by profit and lacking robust regulation, allows problematic centers to frequently reopen under new names, evading accountability for their alleged systematic abuse and neglect.
