Surrogacy – An Overview

it.

Sam Everingham

London, UK – June 2019

Families Through Surrogacy

Overview

• Re-branding

• Surrogacy Availability

• Different Types of Surrogacy

• Supporting Surrogacy Arrangements

• Success Rate Differences

• Issues By Country

• Choosing Providers

• Customised Support

To allow broader education on wider forms of family building

Co-parenting

Egg Donor IVF

Sperm Donor IVF

Surrogacy

Rebranding

Growing Families

• Free registration process

• Entire website will now be free access

• User Reviews of providers freely available

IVF Clinics

Surrogacy Agencies

Law firms

Egg Donor agencies

AHR Bill (Ireland)

• Ireland has drafted a bill to allow domestic surrogacy

• Based on well-outdated UK laws

• Current draft has significant problems and needs re-writing

AHR Bill (Ireland)

• Meeting department officials tomorrow to discuss

• Importance of non-profit agency to support screening,

matching, counselling

• Inclusion of traditional surrogacy

• Lived experience of Irish parents

• Need to allow legal advice for OS surrogacy

Surrogacy Availability

USA, Canada,

Ukraine, Greece,

Georgia, Russia,

Brazil

Australia, Israel, South

Africa, New Zealand,

Netherlands, India,

Thailand, UK, Czech

Republic, Hong Kong

Regulated for own citizens Regulated For citizens +

foreigners

Kenya, Nigeria,

Cyprus, Mexico,

Albania, Columbia

Unregulated (no laws)

Commercial vs Altruistic – Not a

useful differentiator

Supported vs Unsupported

Supported

Typically surrogacy agencies to screen and support

surrogates medically & psychologically

a legally-binding contract

May be

• Regulated (US, Greece, Ukraine, Georgia,

Russia) or

• Unregulated (Mexico, Columbia, Kenya)

Unsupported/ Independent

No professional screening of surrogates

Independent matching and negotiation of

expenses

Based on trust

Surrogates eggs

No transfer of parentage

Far more work by intended parents

Do Success Rates Differ by Country or

Clinic?

Hugely dependent on Embryo quality

In turn dependent on

quality of sperm

quality of eggs/ age of egg provider

For success rates look at Live birth rates, not pregnancy rates

Only US publish clinic-specific audited data on success

Latest data will be two years old

How best can surrogate arrangements

be supported?

• Well screened surrogates

• Pre-surrogacy counselling

• Professional agency support of expense reimbursements

35 years experience

Increased demand

Often excellent surrogate screening

Surrogate match times can be 4 -12 mths

US citizenship awarded

Health insurance important consideration

USA

Canada

Huge influx last 4 years from foreigners

Altruistic & no advertising

poorer surrogate & donor screening

Now a shortage of suitable donors & surrogates

Long wait times to match (12 – 15 months)

Reports of high surrogate drop-out/ poor success

rates

DEMAND NOW FAR EXCEEDS SUPPLY

Canadian Surrogacy

Engage only with providers who ….

• provide realistic timelines

• Don’t introduce you/charge you until surrogates are

medically /psychologically screened

• Hugely Increased demand

• Number of providers quadrupled

• No shortage of surrogates

• Good screening & medical care

• Prices are rising significantly

• 3-4 week exit process for Irish

• Strict eligibility criteria

• Heterosexual married couples only

Ukraine

Altruistic

Transfer of parentage before 1st embryo transfer

Heterosexual couples & single woman

Both parents on birth certificate

Only a handful of good providers

Anonymous egg donors

IVF clinic plays the role of surrogacy agency

GREECE

GEORGIA

Heterosexual couples

Both parents on birth certificate

Egg donors must be known

Well priced

Improved IVF success rates

Stable protective laws

Lesser Known But Increasingly Popular

Columbia

Pros

• Altruistic

• Open to all

• Columbian passport

available

• Fixed price

guarantee programs

Cons

• No specific laws

• Donors must be anonymous

• Surrogate & Intended Father

on birth certificate

• Only operational last six

months for foreigners

Kenya

Cons

• Absence of specific laws

• Surrogate & IF on birth

certificate

• Kenyan passport not available

• Same-sex couples not accepted

socially, so need to present as

single male

• Unstable laws

• Awful reports from gay dads

Pros

• Open to all

• Cost

Choosing Providers – a Tool to Assist

Choosing can be confusing

FTS hosts reviews by parents of scores of providers globally

• Surrogacy Agencies

• IVF Clinics

• Law firms

Even good providers will ultimately attract 1-2 negative reviews

but if you are seeing >2 negative reviews, it’s a red flag

5. Comparative Baseline Costs

£15,397

£5,375 £4,460 £9,560

£800

£24,150

£24,000

£7,600

£8,000

£13,000

£8,940

£6,644

£6,245 £2,000 £7,000

£23,000

£-

£-

£8,000

£11,000

£14,000

£16,950 £3,160

£10,000

£2,930

£2,114

£6,250

£2,500

£6,457

£2,050

£8,000

£2,094

£5,960

£1,500

£-

£-

£12,000

£8,456

£1,800

£1,150

£0

£10,000

£20,000

£30,000

£40,000

£50,000

£60,000

£70,000

£80,000

£90,000

£100,000

£110,000

USA Canada Greece Ukraine UK

Pounds

Country Engaged In

Egg Donor

Surrogate & newborninsurance

Hospital & post-birthcosts

Screening/Counselling

Surro expenses

Surrogatecompensation

Legal costs

IVF & antenatal

Agency fee

Cost Containment

• Costs can typically increase over ‘baseline’ costs

• failed transfers

• Early miscarriages

• Switching from own to donor eggs

• Pregnancy complications

• Surrogate needing additional time off work

Twin Pregnancies A High Risk Scenario

• Increasingly surrogates will not accept double embryo transfer, as

its harder on their bodies

• Twin pregnancies come with far higher medical risks

• US & Canada don’t provide neonate insurance for twins

Customised Support

Help you decide on a country/ provider

More hand-holding/concierge style service

Reliable, proven providers to meet your budget

Wide range of options

One hour or complete journey support

Email sam@familiesthrusurrogacy.com or visit

https://www.familiesthrusurrogacy.com/customised-support/

UN Human Rights Council

• May issue Best Practice Guidelines for member states, regardless of their

legal/moral position on surrogacy

• Based on protecting rights of the child to legal parentage and identity

• Mandated record keeping of genetic identity of children

• Psychological screening of surrogates

• Informed consent of surrogate

• Pre-birth parenthood approval processes

• Recognition of Parentage