Baby Surrender Drop Off Boxes Could Be Coming To Alabama Soon

Alabama could soon have a safer way for parents and families to surrender infants.

Get our free mobile app

Safe Haven Baby Boxes was founded by Monica Kelsey in 2015 in order to give parents an opportunity to anonymously yield their infant without causing harm to the child. Although legally in Alabama parents can drop their kid off at emergency medical providers for up to 72 hours from childbirth, there are still many cases where infants are left in dumpsters.

The Safe Haven Law exists in all 50 states but only 9 of those states actually have safe haven boxes to place infants in. There are 148 Safe Haven Baby Boxes in the US. These 9 states include ​Arizona, Arkansas, Indiana, Maine Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia, Tennessee, Oklahoma, Louisiana, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. According to Safe Haven Baby Boxes, Ohio's abandonment rate decreases each year with more boxes being installed.

These boxes are electronically monitored at all times and the process has been working thus far. When the box door is open there is a silent alarm that goes off and dispatches 911, who in turn alerts the closest fire department or police officers.

Upon approval from Govner Kay Ivey, Alabama could be seeing its first Safe Haven Baby Box device under House Bill 473. With this new bill, parents will be able to surrender their child for up to 45 days old, 100 percent anonymous. Hopefully, this will decrease the number of infants that are abandoned in trash cans or public restrooms.

​If you or someone you know needs help finding a safe haven location call the National Safe Haven crisis hotline at 1-866-99BABY1