Surrogacy and Egg Donation Lawyer & Attorney : Theresa Erickson : Erickson Law Firm : Practicing Reproductive and Gestational Carrier Law

Many people have heard about the increasing number of Intended Parents flying to India for surrogacy because it is cheaper and there are no regulations regarding it. However, it looks as though the Indian government has caught on to this trend and is looking to start regulating it. Of course, this is not necessarily a bad thing; after all, regulations can do a lot of good.

The regulations that many Indian governmental officials are proposing are for the protection of the Indian surrogates (including minimum age limit and health conditions) and the children borne of this process, which could also lead to the protection of prospective Intended Parents to ensure that they do not get bamboozled when going to India for Assisted Reproduction.

In my opinion these regulations are a good thing because even though many of the regulations, say in California, can be very strict, they are usually put in place to protect the health of the surrogate, the child, and even the psychological health of the Intended Parents and the surrogate. What are your thoughts? www.ericksonlaw.net 

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When dealing with infertility, technology has only come so far; especially for women who cannot produce healthy eggs. Even with treatment to produce more eggs the outcome is not always successful since the eggs produced are not healthy. Usually, the only opportunity to have children was through adoption. The solution and another chance for these women come in the form of egg donors. Egg donors are typically women under the age of 30, in excellent health, and have been screened both medically and psychologically. These women undergo treatment to produce healthy eggs for the women who cannot produce their own. Egg donation is the answer to some women’s prayers in relation to infertility. Would you call egg donation a treatment to infertility or an alternative option to infertility? How far does technology need to come in reproductive law till we can solve most infertility questions? Do you think the field of research in infertility is at a disadvantage because it is usually a “woman’s problem”? What are your thoughts? www.ericksonlaw.net

http://sochoc.blogspot.com/2008/06/couples-suffering-from-infertility-can.html

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If you are thinking about becoming a surrogate you most likely have dozens of questions running through your head about what the process entails. Your first step, of course, should be to research surrogacy agencies that will ensure that this process will be a much smoother one then going at it alone. However, I do not recommend that you choose just any agency.

You should first ask each agency that you speak to what their procedures are and what all of their programs entail. Finding the right agency for you is the most important aspect of becoming a surrogate because they will ensure that your journey to helping create a family for others will be enjoyable and as stress free as possible. Just remember to get as much information about each agency as possible so that when you are making your decision you will be able to make an educated and informed decision.

Additionally, many agencies require in person interviews with prospective surrogates so you may want to narrow down your list of prospective agencies to ones that are within a reasonable driving distance from you. Also, I suggest, that while you are looking for what agency to go with, that you begin to gather your medical records from all of your previous pregnancies as well as your most recent pap smear results.

Becoming a surrogate is a wonderful and selfless opportunity to help a couple create the family of their dreams, which is why you should choose the surrogacy agency that most fits your needs.  www.ericksonlaw.net

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The Parents Via Egg Donation Organization has posted a very informative and comprehensive blog about what to look for when searching for the perfect egg donor agency. All of the questions that they give Intended Parents to ask when looking for egg donor agencies are exactly what you need to ask to ensure that you do not pick the wrong agency for you because after all each egg donor agency is not just there to help you create your family; they are most of all a service provider. Therefore, you need to be completely informed prior to choosing an agency. PVED recommends that you ask the following questions before you choose any agency:

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If you are thinking about becoming an Egg Donor you should do plenty of research before you dive headfirst into the process. Yet, not all information available to you on the internet is the best information or even the correct information; and when you are thinking about doing any medical procedure, you need to make sure that you are fully informed about what happens and the risks of these procedures. Below are some sites with great information that can help you with your research. Also make sure that you speak with both your attorney and your physician and have them explain all of the risks and procedures associated with Egg Donation.

http://www.asrm.org/Patients/topics/eggdonation.html - ASRM

http://www.ericksonlaw.net/egg_donation.html - Erickson Law

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Over the past few years, more and more gay couples have been using surrogates to create the family that they have always wanted. This trend has picked up speed due to not only gay rights activism, but also changing state laws that now allow gay couples to become parents through gestational surrogacy. For years, California has been one of the only states that allows gay couples to become parents.  One state that has just recently changed its laws to allow gay couples to create families with the help of a gestation surrogate is Illinois, where for years surrogacy was only allowed if one of the intended parents was biologically related to the child and it was a heterosexual couple. This recent progression of the laws in states like Illinois give hope to gay couples living in other states (like Texas, Florida, and Utah) where gay couples are not allowed to use surrogacy to become parents. Hopefully, with these recent progressions other states will take the initiative to allow all couples to experience the joy of children without bias. What are your thoughts? www.ericksonlaw.net

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In May of 2008 it was announced that the newly elected Italian government was going overturn their old policies of greater acceptance for the medical procedure of in vitro fertilization. This newly elected government stated that they would no longer follow the liberalism of their predecessors, but would follow the more conservative approvals of the Italian people who did not approve of the looser regulation on in vitro fertilization. This change makes me wonder if the Italian people have become more conservative in their view about in vitro fertilization, or if this new conservatism simply comes from the newly elected officials. What are your thoughts? www.ericksonlaw.net

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            The process for selecting an egg donor can be a life-changing and confusing decision. As with any decision it is up to the parent to decide. First the couple must accept the fact that that they are going to love, honor, and cherish this child regardless of eye color, hair color, height, or other physical characteristics.

Second, as stressed in the link to the article that choosing an egg donor is deciding what you want from an egg donor. Whether you would rather have a donor that you know (family member, friend, coworker, or a person selected to meet face to face), a semi-known donor (just first names and state where they reside), or an anonymous donor (one you choose with the help of an agency or clinic). Which type of egg donor do you think makes the best one? Then comes the harder part of what you characteristics/features you would like in an egg donor. Certain intended parents look for intelligence through school grades, SAT scores, and other similar means. Other parents emphasize looks whether to be the prettiest or to the one, who resembles the mother most closely, while another group might go for the most athletically or musically inclined. This decision is unique to the parents in finding someone that might fit into their family. Which trait would you most admire in an egg donor? What kind of egg donor would you look for? What are your thoughts? www.erickonlaw.net

http://tpvedo.blogspot.com/2008/05/how-to-select-egg-donor.html

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Privacy in our society is a fleeting thing. What about privacy of sperm donors? Due to children’s right and health issues, the country’s sperm banks are considering a registry for sperm donors. This registry would allow offspring of the sperm donor to know of inherited health risks. Is it right to take away the privacy of sperm donors in order to allow children to know their health risks? Is it right for sperm donors to remain anonymous?

Another risk with the registry is the sperm donors it might drive away. With more paperwork and with a greater chance of people learning their identities, the process of donating sperm becomes more of a nuisance. With the chance of turning away sperm donors, is it worth it to have the registry? Are the sperm donors who do not want to go through the process, not worth the risk? What are your thoughts? www.erickonlaw.net

http://www.newser.com/story/28378.html?rss=y

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Dreams come true. Without that possibility, nature would not incite us to have them.

John Updike
US author (1932 - )

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According to new statistics, Massachusetts has emerged as the nation’s number one producer of multiples. The national average of multiples is 3.2 for every 100 live births, while in Massachusetts that average jumps to 4.5 for every 100 live births. It seems as though one of the major sources of this high average of multiples is the Massachusetts state law which requires insurance companies to cover assisted reproductive technologies. Which begs the question of whether the average number of multiples born in other states would also increase if the rest of the states also required insurance companies to cover assisted reproductive technologies? What are your thoughts?

www.ericksonlaw.net

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http://www.wesleyjsmith.com/blog/2008/06/dangers-of-egg-donation-being-on-supply.html

In the above mentioned article, the writer barrages his audience with a single, and very sad, story of one of the rare dangers of Egg Donation. Yet, he spins these rare dangers to make it appear that every single Egg Donor is facing the same fate. Yes, there are dangers in Egg Donation, as there are in any invasive procedure, but these are risks that are minimal and each and every Egg Donor is informed of in their legal agreements and from their physicians. And yes, sometimes things go wrong in any medical procedure, as they did for the young woman in the above article; however who’s to say that her tumor wouldn’t have eventually grown and ruptured at a slightly later date causing the exact same scenario?  Egg Donation is something that helps infertile couples achieve their dreams of becoming parents, and it is not about creating the most genetically perfect child as the article of the above article implies.  However, with all scientific and medical procedures that are relatively new there will continuously be criticism and controversy surrounding it. What are your thoughts? www.ericksonlaw.net

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Just yesterday, June 17^th, 2008, it officially became legal for gay couples to marry in the state of California.  While, this is still a very controversial law, it is a big step in helping more people create families through assisted reproduction, especially since California is not requiring any couples to be legal residents of California in order to get married.  Therefore, I wonder if this is going to change how the legal world sees same-sex parents as well. Will married gay couples still have to do step-parent adoptions in order to ensure that both parents, biological and non-biological, are provided the same rights when it comes to the child? Or, will this new law ensure that same-sex married parents are treated the same as heterosexual parents when having a baby via a gestational carrier without the requirement of a step-parent adoption?  Only time and the legal system will tell.

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Recently, there have been numerous articles in the press regarding Egg Donor anonymity and the dangers associated with Egg Donation. Many of these articles state that since Egg Donors are anonymous, for the most part, that a child born with the help of one of these anonymous donors and who ends up with an inherited disease is out of luck and treatment options. However, this is not truly the case, but simply the press’ way of attempting to create media frenzy. In reality, many Egg Donation agreements have complete clauses regarding further contact between the Intended Parents and the Egg Donor for medical reasons.

Another self-created frenzy by the press is how young women who become Egg Donors go into the process without knowing exactly how dangerous it can be. Well, don’t you think that this is infantilizing these women? Even though, as with any invasive medical procedure, Egg Donation does have risks, which are explained in detail to Egg Donors not only by their physicians, but also by their attorneys. Thus, I wonder who is doing the research for these articles and where their statistics are coming from. What do you think?

www.ericksonlaw.net

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        In the California case of North Coast Women’s Care Medical Group, Inc v. Benitez, the Supreme Court of California is set to decide whether or not a clinic, or physician, can successfully use a defense of religion when deciding not to treat a patient based on their marital status or sexual orientation.  The patient, in this case, is alleging that North Coast Women’s Care Medical Group, and their physicians, refused to provide her with fertility treatments because of her sexual orientation.  However, North Coast defends that their refusal of treatment was based on the free exercise of their religious ideals and their supposed right to refuse treatment on the ground of marital status.

According to California law, the rule exists that a doctor may refuse to perform certain medical procedures in accordance with their religious beliefs at large; however, they may not discriminate on a patient by patient basis in determining whether to not perform certain medical procedures while using religion as a defense.  

Under California law, at the time the complaint was brought, the patient was not considered to be legally married to her partner.  Yet, under the Unruh Act, it is unconstitutional to discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation, which now also applies to discrimination based on marital status.  After almost 8 years, the case has finally reached the Supreme Court of California on the heels of the decision to legalize gay marriage in California.  As for now, the court has issued a writ of mandate directing the trial court to vacate its order granting summary judgment on the physicians' religion-based defense and to enter an order denying the motion for summary judgment as to the physicians.  This could be a very controversial and possibly a society changing decision.  The Supreme Court of California currently has 90 days to come to a decision the issue. www.ericksonlaw.net

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With so much going on with same sex marriage here in California and on donor anonymity, I have not had time to update my blog.  Well, I have now created a system where I should get something to you each and every day.  Thanks for hanging in there!  Theresa

www.ericksonlaw.net

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