Residents Go Off About Maine’s First Proposed Safe Haven Baby Box

Maine Safe Haven Law

Back in 2001, according to Maine.gov, Maine enacted a safe haven law that required any "safe haven provider" that received a child under 31 days of age to not only notify their local fire department of the delivery of the child, but also transfer the child to the department and provide any information they were given upon receiving the child.

Maine Safe Haven Provider

In 2021, Maine.gov expanded the list of "safe haven providers" in the state to include: law enforcement officers, medical emergency room staff, medical service providers, hospital staff members at a hospital, firefighters, or people staffing a facility with a safe haven baby box.

And that last "safe haven provider" is what has sparked a massive debate amongst residents throughout Maine.

READ MORE: Photos of the First Maine Babies Born in 2024 Are Adorable

Rumford Fire Department

According to WGME, where the fire department building in Rumford, Maine, is currently under construction, the town is looking to install the state's first Safe Haven Baby Box, which would essentially be a drop-off box located inside the fire department for any newborn not wanted by their parent(s).

(Author's Note: When I tell you that writing the last part of that sentence absolutely gutted me...)

The time it took for the debate to start on the proposed installation of said safe haven baby box in Rumford probably set some kind of Guinness World Record, because it was almost instant, according to the comments section of WGME's Instagram post about this story.

'We need more of these all over the country, and definitely in ME. Pushing DHHS to set some rules needs to happen now, who knows how many children could be saved.' - drue_drop

 

'...I feel like we could do better. These babies are not only gonna be dumped in a box unwanted by their biological mother, most likely they’re gonna be living a life of abuse in foster care.' - samanthamjudd

 

'Yu do not understand the child abuse inside the system that is the last thing we need I’m disgusted with your ignorance of how these kids end up trafficked and u think u ppl really helping the world...' - maines_finest207

 

'Justifying these behaviors only makes it easier for people to be comfortable with the idea of it happening to begin with. You’re justifying negative actions by saying it’s okay, it’s safe to do it here which feeds the cycle. Am I wrong?' - sn0ffers

Regardless of what side of the fence you land on in this debate, I think there is overall one thing we can all agree on -- this comment left by leviknapp on the WGME Instagram post.

So sad that this even has to be a thing.