The Surrogacy Journey: Not Just For The Wealthy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CHICAGO (Feb. 17, 2009) - While the common perception about using gestational
surrogacy as a route to creating families is that it’s a rich person’s game,
a Chicago egg donation and surrogacy agency begs to differ.
“In the eight years that we’ve been matching surrogates with our clients, few
have done it without making financial and personal sacrifices. And nobody’s ever
shown regret,” says Robin von Halle, president of Alternative Reproductive Resources
(www.arr1).
“Some take out second mortgages. Others work two or three jobs. We know one couple
whose family and friends held benefits for them to help cover the costs.”
A typical surrogacy costs between $30,000 to $100,000, with intended parents
responsible for the surrogate’s compensation, clinic fees, medications, attorney
and agency fees and travel expenses. Insurance is another major issue; most surrogates
are not covered under their own policies due to insurance companies inserting
surrogate clauses into its documents, so intended parents take on this responsibility
as well.
Last year, a writer described her experience with surrogacy birth in the New
York Times Magazine that raised the ire of many readers and concern of agencies
like ARR for the implications that this is a luxury solution for movie stars
and the uber rich.
“This couldn’t be further from the truth,” said von Halle. “It’s a path that
ordinary people find a way to take.”
Take Chicagoan John Farley (name changed), who made many tradeoffs when he and
his wife prepared for their gestational surrogacy experience. This self-described
blue-collar worker says, “We took out a home equity loan for the down payment
and scaled back tremendously on things like dining out and vacations. Our parents
also pitched in.”
John also worked two extra jobs to help cover the surrogacy costs for the surrogacy.
“It wasn’t as hard as you would think. The emotional part was more difficult,”
he notes.
In considering how to finance a surrogacy birth, John stresses paying attention
to the contract and being aware of additional fees that may be incurred.
Surrogacy helped John and his wife become parents of twin boys. Cost: Over $50,000.
They expect to have it paid off in about four years. And it was worth, he says,
every penny.”
Media contact:
Hodge Schindler Integrated Communications
Sally Saville Hodge
shodge@hodgeschindler.com
Robyn Velasquez
rvelasquez@hodgeschindler.com
312.666.6662
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