What if the father wants to sign the AOP but cannot come to the hospital?
Sometimes the parents are not able to do everything necessary to acknowledge paternity while the mother and baby are still at the hospital, or the father cannot come to the hospital. When this happens, the parents can sign the AOP before the baby is born, and the mother can bring the AOP to the hospital at the time of birth. She can also take one home after the birth. The father must take the AOP to a Child Support Office, the local registry, or another certified entity to receive information on his rights and responsibilities.
