WEISER, Idaho — Weiser Memorial Hospital is seeking funding to install a Safe Haven Baby Box, which offers parents an anonymous and secure option to surrender a newborn.
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The hospital says the resource is "urgent" in the region, citing "persistent economic hardship, substance use disorders, limited access to prenatal and mental health care, and increased risks of unsafe infant abandonment."
Currently, there are two boxes in Idaho, one in Sandpoint and the other in Blackfoot. The hospital, emphasizing the need, says there are increased risks of abandonment as large geographic areas in the state are underserved.
Idaho law protects parents who surrender a newborn in a safe haven from prosecution, so long as "the child was no more than 30 days old when he or she was left at the safe haven, as determined within a reasonable degree of medical certainty." From there, law enforcement ensures the child is not missing, and the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare places the child with a potential adoptive parent as soon as possible.
According to the Weiser Memorial Hospital, there were 6 safe surrenders in Idaho in 2025. Since 2017, the hospital itself has recorded seven involuntary infant surrenders and one voluntary surrender in 2023.
So far, the Weiser Memorial Hospital Foundation has raised $9,600 of the total $29,000 needed for the project.
To donate, call Weiser Memorial Hospital Foundation Executive Director, Kim Burgess, at 208-549-4412 or email kburgess@weiserhospital.org.
