Your Frequently Asked Questions Answered About Surrogacy
What is Gestational Surrogacy?
Gestational surrogacy is when a woman carries an embryo that is not genetically related to her on behalf of another individual or couple, who intend to be the resulting child’s parent(s).
What is Traditional Surrogacy?
Traditional surrogacy is when a woman carries an embryo created from her own egg and the sperm of a donor or an intended father, on behalf of another individual or couple, who intend to be the resulting child’s parent(s).
Is surrogacy legal in all states?
No, surrogacy is prohibited and even criminalized in some states. Other states have laws that prohibit paid surrogacy and/or make it more difficult or impossible for same sex couples to utilize surrogates.
What are the basic requirements to be a surrogate?
Many clients have asked what they should look for when choosing a gestational carrier. Ultimately, the best answer is that they should work with someone that “feels right,” and most intended parents know that feeling when it comes. However, to offer additional guidance, click here for a blog post to get you started.
What goes into a gestational surrogacy contract?
The contract covers all aspects of the gestational surrogacy and sets out the rights and obligations of each party before, during, and after the pregnancy. Well-drafted surrogacy contracts are usually over 40 pages long and contain detailed provisions about all aspects of the journey. This assists parties in making ongoing conversations less awkward and setting framework and guidelines for what everyone can expect throughout the relationship and long into the future.
What is the overall timeline for a surrogacy journey?
There are three segments of time when embarking on a surrogacy journey. Stage One is day one to surrogate match, Stage Two is surrogate match to transfer, and Stage Three is transfer to birth. Click here for a checklist to help you on your journey.
What is the approximate cost of a surrogacy journey?
There is a lot that goes into the Finances of Surrogacy. The average journey will likely run between $80,000 and $220,000 depending on a number of variables. The main ones are: whether you work with an agency, which agency you choose, the compensation terms in your contract, and the type of health insurance that your surrogate has.
Your Frequently Asked Questions Answered About Infertility and ART
What is infertility?
In general, infertility is defined as not being able to get pregnant (conceive) after one year (or longer) of unprotected sex. Because fertility in women is known to decline steadily with age, sometimes women over 35 years of age are diagnosed with infertility after 6 months of trying, rather than one year.
Is infertility a common problem?
Yes, about 1 in 8 couples experience fertility challenges. About 12% of American women between 15 and 44 years old have difficulty getting pregnant or carrying a pregnancy to term.
What is Assisted Reproductive Technology?
Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) includes all fertility treatments in which conception occurs outside of sexual intercourse.
What are the types of ART?
Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) – IUI is a fertility treatment that involves placing sperm directly into a woman’s uterus to facilitate fertilization. The goal of IUI is to increase the number of sperm that reach the fallopian tubes and subsequently increase the chance of fertilization.
In vitro fertilization (IVF) – Eggs and sperm are combined in a laboratory to create embryos. After about five days, the embryo (or embryos) is transferred into a woman’s uterus (either the intended mother or a gestational surrogate). Embryos can also be frozen for a future transfer. When a frozen embryo is thawed and transferred into a woman’s uterus it is called a frozen embryo transfer (FET). The preferred method is to transfer just one embryo called a single embryo transfer (SET).
Intra-Cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) – ICSI is a type of IVF that is often used for couples with male factor infertility or for same sex female couples using donor sperm. With ICSI, a single sperm is injected into a mature egg. The alternative to ICSI is “conventional” fertilization where the egg and many sperm are placed in a petri dish together and the sperm fertilizes an egg on its own.
What is preimplantation genetic testing (PGT)?
Preimplantation genetic testing is a procedure used to identify genetic disorders or chromosomal abnormalities in embryos created during an IVF cycle. One or more cells are biopsied from each embryo and sent for testing. These procedures used to be referred to as preimplantation genetic screening (PGS) and preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD).
What kind of doctor helps with fertility issues?
A reproductive endocrinologist or “RE” is the type of doctor that assists patients with fertility issues.
Please contact us if you have any questions. Because, sometimes it takes a village.