Understanding Surrogacy in Pennsylvania

Legality of surrogacy in the USA is considered to be an ongoing argument or debate. What adds to its complexity is the fact that the laws vary per state which results in more questions than answers for many people.

Given this, one must fully understand the laws regulating surrogacy in all states to avoid running into any problems as you go along this process.

Surrogate’s Compensation

Knowing how much to pay one’s surrogate is one of the many matters to take a closer look at when choosing surrogacy.

Whatever pay a traditional or gestational surrogate receives, it is crucial to know for certain that they are not an employee. Even when the surrogate does this free of charge, she is still not qualified due to the employee – employer connection.

Traditional or Gestational Surrogacy

Gestational Surrogacy is different from Traditional surrogacy since the surrogate carries the pregnancy and gives birth from an already fertilized egg. In this case, there will be no hereditary link between the surrogate as well as the child.

Traditional Surrogacy, on the other hand, is the method wherein the woman carrying a surrogate pregnancy goes through artificial insemination or even In Vitro by merging the surrogate’s eggs together with the semen of the donor. In this case, the surrogate has a hereditary link to the baby, which can be high-risk due to the said genetic connection.

The Essential Factors and Guidelines of Surrogacy Agreements

The legal representative enlisted on the case will require all the information coming from the surrogate and also the intended parents. Working side by side with an experienced lawyer will certainly help. Remember to have separate lawyers for surrogate and the intended parents.

Having a strong attention to detail is required when creating the agreement that will level set expectations for the surrogate mother. The checklist below can help and assist in understanding what should be present in the said agreement. Having these in place will save a lot of time and minimize any concerns on both parties.

  • Name of parties involved: intended parents and the woman acting as the surrogate.
  • Should be of legal age
  • Number of attempts
  • The process of getting pregnant, like “no sexual intercourse.
  • Agreement to never attempt to discontinue the pregnancy.
  • A declaration that the mother is unable to conceive or sustain a pregnancy.
  • Statements of extensive clinical and mental state of the surrogate as agreed.
  • Health plan for all concerned, including the fertilized egg (s).
  • Procedures including the positioning of the fertilized egg (s).
  • Close watch on surrogate’s activities as well as medication ingested.
  • Discussion and agreement on regular prenatal health care.
  • Regulation on the surrogate’s activities that may be seen as dangerous to the pregnancy as well as the birth procedure.
  • Surrogate’s parental rights.
  • The presence of the couple throughout childbirth.
  • Legal or Physical custody of the couple and surrogate once the child is born.
  • Financial terms and obligations in the course of pregnancy and post pregnancy.
  • Confidentiality terms and clauses.

This checklist mainly covers what is good to know at the onset of this process. It is, however, best to watch out for other conditions that will better prepare you for any issues that may happen in the future.

Lawful Issues Post-Birth Adoption

A number of states make it possible for the identification of the mother and father to appear on the child’s birth certificate. In other states, the surrogate’s name is the one put on the document, which may be changed later when the order for the intended parent comes and gets listed.

Some states permit pre-birth sequence under specific conditions. What remains to be very important is to have a good understanding of the rules of each state with regard to surrogacy.

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