According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) over one in three children in this country is born out-of-wedlock, an astonishing 41%! This is a sharp increase from the percentage of births to unwed mothers in 2002 (34%) and an even larger increase from 1980 (18.4%). These births place a huge financial burden on the US taxpayer, costing $2.2 billion in welfare and food stamps each year.

The prospects for long-term education and job status for these children are depressing. Without the emotional and financial support of both parents, babies born to single mothers fare more poorly in school and in the workplace than children born to married couples. Regardless of your view on single motherhood and out-of-wedlock births, these statistics clearly show that a father's role in his child's upbringing is absolutely critical to that child's success in life. Many of these alleged fathers are not willing to step up to the plate and take responsibility for their children and we all pay for it.

There are numerous reasons that an alleged father may not want to acknowledge his child. Perhaps he is embarrassed, confused, frustrated, angry or all of these. In spite of a man's emotions at the time of the pregnancy and birth it is in the child's and the communities best interest, if not the father's, to recognize the baby so that they have access to any financial benefits that the father has. These range from health insurance coverage to social security and military benefits. Financial benefits can mean the difference between dropping out of high school or going to college, between going hungry and getting three square meals a day, and between holding a job and being on welfare. Children without fathers are twice as likely to drop out of school, boys born to teen mothers are 2.7 times more likely to end up behind bars, and girls born to unwed adolescent mothers have an 83% chance of having a child in her teen years.

The 1996 Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) included the Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity (AOP) meant to reduce the number of out-of-wedlock births for the benefit of the child - financially, socially and emotionally. An incentive included in the PRWORA is the awarding of annual bonuses to states that reduce the percentage of unwed, unacknowledged births by the largest amount without increasing abortions. Therefore, hospital birth certificate registrars or other trained hospital personnel are highly encouraged to get as many unwed fathers as possible to sign the AOP at the time the birth certificate is completed and they are required to counsel the unmarried parents on the meaning and responsibilities that the AOP establishes for the child and the parents.

If an alleged father does not voluntarily acknowledge a child by signing the AOP, the mother's only recourse is legal action. She can file suit through Child Support Enforcement. A state paternity test may be required and if the man in question is found to be the biological father, he may be held liable for the costs of the paternity test. Parents have 60 days to rescind the AOP but after that time period many states will deny the request if the alleged father did not get a paternity test when he had the opportunity. A paternity test can provide the peace of mind that would allow both parents to sign the AOP knowing that they are responsible for the well-being and support of the child.

Fathers of out-of-wedlock children usually have the financial means to support their children but only 15% of teen mothers are ever awarded support. The goal of the PRWORA and the Voluntary Acknowledgment of Paternity is to increase child support collections by $24 billion and reduce federal welfare costs by $4 billion over 10 years. Because we are all paying for the explosion of children born to single mothers, it is in our best interest as a nation to support the work that the AOP is trying to accomplish and encourage these men stand up to their responsibility.

Maureen A. Young is a Customer Education Advocate for Any Lab Test Now. She writes blogs, eBooks, and articles on current topics in Health and Wellness, Employer Drug Programs and Informational Lab Tests. Connect with them at http://www.anylabtestnow.com/

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